Rule the Ming Dynasty Alone

Early the next morning, Qianqing Palace.

The cicadas are chilling, it's late in the pavilion, and the showers are beginning to stop.

There is no trace of drinking in the tent of the capital, and the place of nostalgia is the orchid boat.

…

The woman who slept with me last night was a Lotus beauty, so my waist was a little sore.

The path of the little fairy is always worth looking forward to. She was restless when she was a palace maid, and now she wants to get a higher title before finalizing the "one queen, two concubines and nine concubines".

Zhu Youtang didn't believe in the literati's theory that beauty harming the country was just an argument made by the incompetence of civil servants.

As for the time limit set by later dynasties, this kind of thing can only be said to be an excuse for a certain three minutes. Now he prefers to do it casually and enjoy one of the greatest pleasures of being an emperor.

Since today is the last morning meeting in August, I got up earlier than usual.

"Your Majesty, do you have something on your mind?" Liu Jin asked softly and cautiously as the roundworm in Zhu Youtang's belly was already evolving.

Zhu Youtang knew that his thoughts had been seen through, and he couldn't help but sigh softly.

The information Wang Zhi received from Liu Daxia was sent back to the capital. He asked Wang Xiang and Du Ming to go to the Yamen of the Ministry of War to search, but the required Annan files were not found.

The development of the matter was unexpected. Now they don't know whether Liu Daxia lied or the Annan files stored there were stolen again.

Even though he was the high-ranking Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, it was still very difficult to know the truth of some things. Now the affairs of the Annan files seem confusing.

It is different from the online novels read by later generations. As long as the emperor's tiger body trembles, all the civil and military officials of the dynasty will prostrate to the ground. The reality is that all the civil and military officials kneel down, but now there are constant conspiracies and intrigues underneath.

Judging from the coercion process submitted by Wang Zhi and Liu Zhong, Liu Daxia should not have lied at that time, but now the Annan file cannot be found at the location where Liu Daxia confessed.

Liu Daxia gave wrong information about the Annan file, and someone else stole the Annan file in advance. Now the Annan file is shrouded in fog.

Zhu Youtang vaguely felt that there seemed to be a hidden force in this court. After rinsing his mouth, he said calmly: "Is Liu Daxia coming to the capital soon?"

"Your Majesty, Liu Daxia has been transported to the capital in an urgent manner. He is expected to arrive in the capital today!" Liu Jin personally took the tea cup and reported respectfully.

After the Southwest Archives could not be found in the location of the Jianzhou Archives, His Majesty personally ordered local officials to quickly transport the prisoner Liu Daxia to Beijing.

Zhu Youtang knew that he could only start with Liu Daxia again. This time he had to find out where the Southwest files were. The delay was really too long.

When we walked out of Qianqing Palace, the sky was just getting brighter.

Before Zhu Youtang stepped onto the dragon chariot, he turned to look at the milky white clouds in the east and sighed: "Today's morning is not peaceful!"

Outside the Meridian Gate, as the bells and drums of the Meridian Gate Tower rang, the palace gate slowly opened.

"Today we will definitely kill this evil thief!"

"It is unheard of since the dawn of time to harm a whole family of virtuous ministers like this!"

"Of course we want to support the emperor, but we hope someone can distinguish right from wrong!"

…

Officials of the Hanlin Academy seemed murderous today. They not only openly appealed to other officials, but also issued veiled warnings to officials such as Li Yu, the Minister of Civil Affairs.

Although news of Wang Zhi's burning of Liu Daxia's family had already reached the capital, the time for the morning court was now changed, so they had to endure it until today before preparing to give Wang Zhi a fatal blow.

Not to mention that their civil servant group has always been a unit that advances and retreats together. Even if there is no reason, they still have to find reason. Now that they have righteousness, they naturally kill that eunuch.

The loudest voice here is not Liu Jian, the new Qingliu leader, the left minister of the Ministry of Rites, but a little old man wearing a sixth-grade official uniform, and his official position is only Hanlin editor.

The ecology of the officialdom of the Ming Dynasty is actually very complex. It is usually based on the level of the official position, but there will also be some special circumstances. For example, Yang Ting, the former eighth-rank Hanlin reviewer, and Liu Daxia, the fifth-rank chariot driver, were all officials who had access to important figures in the dynasty.

Li Yu, the Minister of Personnel, and other officials looked at each other in confusion. Especially when they saw Zhang Zhen looking like she was sharpening her sword, they vaguely felt that these people were going to cause trouble.

The early dynasty followed the usual procedures, but when it came to the Hanlin Academy, it was not the Hanlin bachelor who came out, but the Hanlin editor Zhang Yuanzhen who jumped out: "The Hanlin editor Zhang Zhen reported to the Nanjing garrison eunuch Wang Zhi for his illegal activities. Please punish him." Kill this thief!"

coming!

Li Yu, the Minister of Civil Affairs, and others saw that it was Zhang Zhen who was the Hanlin editor, and couldn't help but feel a headache.

Zhang Zhen is nearly sixty years old this year, but although this person has only graduated from the sixth rank of Hanlin, he is a Jinshi in the first year of Tianshun, and his qualifications have surpassed most of the officials present.

He entered the Hanlin Academy as a scholar, and because of his excellent performance, he was transferred to the Hanlin Editor. After Emperor Xianzong of the Ming Dynasty came to the throne, he once wrote a book about three things: "lecturing diligently, listening to government affairs, and making extensive use of talents." Later, he was jailed for his excessive words. Zong Xian was disgusted and angrily resigned and returned home.

Although Zhang Zhen failed in her official career, she gained a great reputation in Shilin.

During the twenty-two years since he resigned, he has been committed to teaching. He co-founded Ziyun Academy with Li Min, the former Minister of Household Affairs, and led his disciples to promote his ideas, so he had a great reputation among scholars.

When Zhu Youtang first succeeded to the throne, Xu Pu and others urged Zhang Zhen to return to the court, but Zhang Zhen agreed after repeatedly declining and participated in the compilation of "Xianzong Shilu" as a Hanlin editor.

Zhang Zhen not only became the well-deserved leader of the Henan Township Party, but was also praised by many officials as the most sage of the dynasty. His reputation in the court has surpassed that of Xu Qiong, the Minister of Rites.

Now he suddenly stood up and pointed the finger at Wang Zhi. The attack power behind this was stronger than Liu Fenjian, the left minister of the Ministry of Rites, and his words were destined to arouse support from Shilin.

Killing Wang Zhi was not only Zhang Ji's wish, but now probably represented the voice of Ming Shilin.

"Wang Zhi used the lives of Liu Daxia and his family to force Liu Daxia to reveal the location of Annan's files. I already know the truth, and this matter is not suitable for criminal investigation!" Zhu Youtang opened the memorial that was handed over without following the formal procedures, and found that it was indeed Wang Zhishao's name. The death of Liu's family was the starting point, so he expressed his position lightly.

Although Wang Zhi's approach was cruel, it was not necessarily too wrong.

Liu Daxia still wants to hide the Annan Files, but he doesn't know that the Annan Files are now related to this foreign war, and even more to the national destiny of the Ming Dynasty.

If someone like Wang Zhi who devoted himself to the Ming Dynasty was going to be punished for this, then he wanted to share the blessings of peace with these civil servants and turned a blind eye to the life and death of the people in the southwest.

When the civil and military officials present heard Zhu Youtang's statement, they were actually expecting this result.

After all, this is not a virtuous king who can be manipulated by others, but an emperor with power and drive, so it is unlikely to deal with eunuchs like Wang Zhi who run errands for him.

The east gradually lit up, and there was just a glow.

Zhang Zhen has twenty years of teaching experience, and then she looked up passionately as if she was in the classroom: "Your Majesty, how can you protect such evil thieves? Dozens of lives are lost!"

These words were full of unwillingness and shock, as if Zhu Youtang had really made a mistake.

The officials present were really frightened by the highly respected Zhang Zhen. Many officials began to think about whether they should let Wang Zhi go and whether they should cut Wang Zhi into pieces.

"Zhang Zhen, do you think the country of the Ming Dynasty is more important? Or the lives of Liu Daxia's family of dozens of people?" Zhu Youtang was immune to this kind of emotional card, so he asked calmly.

Zhang Zhen, who had gone through countless debates over the years of discussing Taoism, immediately showed his strength: "Your Majesty, these two things cannot be confused! Do not do evil because it is small, and do not do good because it is small. This is It’s what the previous sages said!”

"I don't care about cultivating one's morality now, but governing the country! You are focused on the life and death of Liu Daxia's family and Wang Zhi's little evil. Don't you care about the war between Ming Dynasty and Li Dynasty?" Zhu Youtang found that this old man was confusing concepts. , couldn't help but ask loudly.

Huh?

Li Yu, the Minister of Civil Affairs, and other officials heard Zhu Youtang's clear rebuttal and couldn't help but nodded gently. At the same time, they looked at this emperor who was becoming more and more powerful.

Judging from a gentleman's perspective, Wang Zhi's method of using Liu Daxia's family to blackmail can be said to be an outright villain's behavior. Just based on the interests of the country, Wang Zhi's approach is meritorious and meritorious.

Zhang Zhen realized that the young emperor in front of him was really not easy to fool, so he threw out another attack point and said: "Your Majesty, with all due respect, this war should not have happened! The whole world can be affected by a single move. In this new dynasty, When the disease begins, it will lead to a revival. However, as the war continues, the southwest is rotten, the people have no peace, and the imperial court will never be prosperous!"

"Zhang Xiuzhuan, the Li Dynasty is just a small vassal state. Are you underestimating yourself?" Xu Qiong, the Minister of Rites, couldn't help but stand up.

"If the Li Dynasty uses troops, our Dynasty will definitely win. How can you say that the southwest is corrupt?"

Li Si, the Minister of Household Affairs, was actually the person who was least willing to start a war. After all, if a war broke out, finances would have to be tilted toward the southwest, but he had no objection this time.

It is true that fighting a war costs money, but now the Le Dynasty is already pushing further and further. If the Ming Dynasty continues to swallow its anger, it will definitely intensify its attack on the people in the southwest. It is better to fight to establish the power of the Celestial Empire.

The most important thing is that the granary left by Xianzong has been consolidated, and by sorting out the salt policy and clearing the land, the new dynasty's finances can now fully support the use of troops in the southwest.

Zhang Zhen believed in her knowledge, so she talked eloquently: "When the world prospers, the people suffer; when the world falls, the people suffer. Taizong settled Annan back then, but the country spent millions. Why not learn from it now?" So what if we win a temporary victory? However, as time goes by, foreign vassals start fighting again, and the Ming Dynasty's army is exhausted and running for its life. In the end, it is the people of our dynasty who suffer. The new dynasty is suffering from serious illness, and everything is waiting for improvement. How can we start a war for a bead? "

"The war is the result of discussions between me and the cabinet and the six ministers. Today we are not here to argue about whether we should go to war!" Zhu Youtang realized that the other party was a staunch peace advocate, but he was unwilling to continue arguing with such a person. .

Ming Dynasty's Ci ministers really felt good about themselves. Even though he had excluded them directly from the decision-making circle, he still insisted on joining them to participate in the decision-making.

It's just that they, the "kneeling ministers" of the world, are not sick now, so how can they discuss with them whether they should declare war on Li Dynasty.

After all, what they pursue is to share the blessings of the world, and what they seek is development, to build Ming Dynasty into the world's textile center.

I thought Zhang Zhen had nothing to say, but Zhang Zhen refused to give up: "Your Majesty, you have asked the cabinet and the six ministries, but you have not asked the Hanlin Academy. Many people in our Hanlin Academy do not think that starting a war is a serious matter. Good policy! For such an important matter of national affairs, we should open up a wide range of opinions!"

"As long as the Hanlin Academy does its duty, national affairs will be decided by important ministers!" Zhu Youtang said with a straight face knowing that there were indeed some officials in the Hanlin Academy who were in charge.

Zhang Zhen was not afraid of offending a group of important ministers at all. She glanced at Li Yu and other officials in front of her with disdain: "Your Majesty, the ministers you rely on now are not virtuous ministers. The virtuous ministers of this dynasty have always come from the Hanlin Academy, but now There are many courtiers in the country, so you should listen to the opinions of the Hanlin Academy! As far as I know, the Minister of Rites, Liu Shilang, is opposed to the war, but you actually insist on going your own way, which makes him want to resign and return to the field!"

"Zhang Zhen, I just made it very clear! Today is not a discussion about whether to go to war or who to discuss important national affairs. If you continue to mess around, I will expel you from the court! How dare Liu Daxia hide the southwest files privately? It's me who I sent Wang Zhi to ask for it, but Liu Daxia dared not return the favor. This is a treasonous act!" Zhu Youtang found that the old man was taking matters into his own hands and would not let him go, and he was also acting like an emperor.

Zhang Zhen looked like he didn't even take Zhu Youtang seriously, but continued to pester: "Your Majesty, your loyal words are hard to hear! Liu Daxia hid Annan's files because he wanted the imperial court to have a truce, and he rejected Your Majesty for the sake of the stability of millions of people in the southwest. This is why The most loyal minister!"

"Loyal minister? Can I openly defy my will? Come, expel Zhang Zhen from the court, and he will not be in court in the future!" Zhu Youtang's face sank, and he immediately issued the decree.

Liu Jian, the left minister of the Ministry of Rites, and other ministers stood up and asked for mercy: "Your Majesty, please calm down. Zhang Xiuzan is devoted to serving the country. Please don't punish him for his outspoken words!"

Zhu Youtang looked at this group of pleading ministers and finally understood why it was so difficult to govern the country. None of these educated hooligans were good at what they did, but they were all first-class masters who held them back.

"In order to protect the Ming Dynasty forever, please don't engage in war or talk about weapons. Please punish Wang Zhi, this thief. I am a loyal minister to the country, and I am willing to die to remonstrate with you!" Zhang Zhen pointed to the stone lion over there, and rushed forward with a lunge. Go up.

"Stop him quickly!" Wan An saw Zhang Zhenzhen about to hit the stone lion and hurriedly reminded the officials below.

Wang Xiang was about to lead the two royal guards to arrest someone, but when he saw the little old man rushing to the other side, his heart immediately rose to his throat.

boom!

Zhang Zhen's head hit the stone lion's strong chest muscles hard, causing a splash of blood.

It's just that this time is different from the time when Li Quan, Shaoqing of Shangbaosi, did not have a fair young fat man running out. Now there are mostly a bunch of old guys in front.

It’s over!

When Wan An saw this man bumping into the stone lion, he immediately realized that something was wrong.

Zhang Zhen was hit with a bruised head and bleeding, and her body seemed to be shaky and unsteady. A satisfied smile appeared on her face, as if she had done something extraordinary: "Stop the war, cut off the Wangzhi, cure the serious illness, and use it extensively." Xian, to Zhongxing!"

But as soon as he finished speaking, he fell to the ground.