Rule the Ming Dynasty Alone

As night falls, the lights on the Qinhuai River are brightly lit.

"Anyone who dares to sell our girls overseas without the murderer's property? If the girl doesn't return for a year, everyone will be killed."

As this new decree from the imperial court spread, the city of Nanjing was shaken up, and many officials and gentry seemed shocked.

If the abolition of the silver standard is to devour the wealth they have accumulated over the years, then the latest decree of the imperial court is to break the concept of patriarchal supremacy.

Of course, this imperial decree was actually targeted, and the target of the attack was the Jiangnan business house that was currently the most popular.

In order to quickly open up the Japanese market and establish friendly relations with various famous names in Japan, Jiangnan Company's top management also intended to use women for diplomacy.

The royal family of the Ming Dynasty did not get along because of the so-called face, but after all, the Jiangnan business house was mainly businessmen, but they did not care about these face, and they cared more about real things.

Li Yi, Zheng Jie and Hao Houtian are all romantic young masters. Even if it is their beloved concubine, they can give it away to those famous names who want to make friends with them.

If this imperial decree is implemented in Jiangnan, not only the romantic Hou Haotian and Li Yi will suffer, but most of the people in the entire Jiangnan business will not survive.

It's not that they trafficked so many women, but that they "abducted" many female weavers from Jiangnan in order to build Jiangnan Textile Factory on Kyushu Island.

Of course, after these female weavers were sent to Kyushu Island, they actually had no intention of taking them back, but it was no different than abducting them to Japan.

Because of this, the decree to abolish the silver standard cannot be implemented, and this latest decree cannot be implemented in Jiangnan.

"The tyrant is really cruel!"

"It's not just cruel, it's simply inhumane!"

"Let's cooperate with the capital and we must get rid of the tyrant at all costs!"

…

On a painting boat on the Qinhuai River at night, a group of middle-aged and elderly people with great momentum have gathered here, and they are discussing with gnashing teeth.

Although Emperor Hongzhi's reputation is getting better and better among the lower class people, in the eyes of the officials and gentry, he is even more hateful than King Zhou of Shang.

Faced with the pressing steps of the tyrant Hongzhi and the coming disaster, Jiangnan Company did not intend to surrender, but chose a path of resistance.

Ordinarily, the Ming Emperor was the biggest beneficiary of the blessings of peace, but he should not press them step by step. However, the Ming Emperor happened to be an outlier.

It would be fine if Hongzhi was an emperor with great ambitions and limited talents, but he had already become full-fledged five years after he ascended the throne, and he even openly targeted Jiangnan with his machete.

That's why they want to neutralize the coming butcher's knife. The most effective way is to deal with the one in the Forbidden City. Only by letting that emperor die can they return to the mode of sharing the blessings of peace.

"Okay, let's work together with the capital!" The man in black robe sitting at the head table said with a solemn face, but he suddenly made the final decision.

Hou Zan, the Zuo Shilang of Nanjing, was also among them. Originally he was hesitant about joining Jiangnan Company, but now he knew that only by joining Jiangnan Company could he find a chance of survival.

This night, Jiangnan looked even more treacherous.

In addition to contacting and cooperating with Beijing City, Jiangnan Company did not intend to sit still and wait for death, but mobilized its own forces to block the new decree.

"The sage said: Only women and villains can raise children!"

"It is unheard of since ancient times for a woman to kill a whole family!"

"If the woman accidentally died overseas, who can say clearly?"

…

Jiangnan merchants would soon encourage those great scholars to come out, and through their influence among the reading public, they would use public opinion to stop the imperial decree.

"Such a tyranny should not be obeyed!"

Lou Ming, a great scholar from Jiangnan, stood up immediately and expressed his clear-cut opposition.

Lou Ming studied under the great Confucian Wu Yubi and served as a civil servant in the fifth year of Jingtai. Although he became an official through civil servants, he resigned within a few years and went home to write books and establish his studies behind closed doors.

Becoming a famous teacher, abandoning officialdom, and writing books to establish learning are the most important "qualities" of a great Confucian. As a result, Lou Ming had them all, so there are countless scholars who admire and worship him.

Now that he has taken a stand, he can naturally influence a large number of scholars.

"Learn from the rise and fall of the past and understand the success or failure of the past!"

"The government should put the people first and help the people!"

"The circle should not violate the rules, the square should not violate the rules, and the government should not lose its way!"

…

Faced with this latest decree, a large group of scholars expressed their position one after another, and even surrounded the Jiangning County Government Office under the instigation of thoughtful people.

At any time, public opinion is often the magic weapon for victory.

The Jiangnan official gentry group was very good at making use of this force, trying to inspire scholars to oppose political decrees by promoting male rights.

Nanjing in June seems very muggy at this time.

Nanjing Metropolitan Procuratorate, back house.

Wang Yue went to Jiangnan at the beginning of the year and was injured by a hidden arrow. He stayed in Nanjing to recuperate from his injuries and illness, spending most of his time here.

A dignified minister came to the local government and also served as the most powerful governor of Southern Zhili. Naturally, he was fawned over by all parties.

Wang Yue has acted very low-key since arriving in Nanjing. Even if Wei Guogong came to ask for an audience, he only met with Wei Guogong twice. As for other senior officials, they were basically shut out.

But today, it seemed quite unexpected. A middle-aged man wearing a sixth-grade official uniform came to the back house.

"Hai Kuan, the magistrate of Jiangning County, pays homage to Mr. Wang Ge!" Hai Kuan and Hu Jun came to the pavilion and immediately greeted Wang Yue in a polite manner.

Although he believed in a group of gentlemen rather than a party, he could only respect this elder who had made great achievements at the border and wiped out salt corruption in Yangzhou.

Although Wang Yue was old, his waist was straight and his eyes were bright. He raised his eyes to look at Hai Kuan, then gently raised his hand and said: "Haizhi County, please sit down!"

"Mr. Xie Ge!" Hai Rui then sat down in a proper manner and at the same time looked at the world-famous King Beheading in front of him.

Different from the murderous devil described by many people, Wang Yue has the build of a burly man from the north, but the years have carved textures on his face, and his whole person is somewhat amiable.

It just made him slightly puzzled. Since Wang Yue came to Nanjing City, he had always claimed to be sick and refused to see anyone, but the Wang Yue in front of him did not look like a patient.

Wang Yue picked up the tea cup on the table, then smiled slightly and said: "Haizhi County, do you think this old man is not like a patient?"

"I don't dare to speculate!" Although Hai Kuan thought so, he still said it in a dignified manner.

Wang Yue took a sip of tea, looked into Hai Kuan's eyes and said: "To be honest with Haizhi County, Nanjing is an excellent place to recuperate. I have always been malingering in Nanjing!"

He was originally feeling unwell in the capital, but when he came to Nanjing, his health got better day by day. Even if the emperor now asks him to go to the border, he can still ride a horse to kill the enemy.

Just to reduce unnecessary entertainment and to paralyze the enemy, he kept claiming illness to the outside world.

"Falking illness? Mr. Wang Ge, was that assassination also a fraud?" Hai Kuan's eyes narrowed slightly and he asked curiously.

Wang Yue put down the tea cup gently, but shook his head gently and said: "The last assassination was true! It was that assassination that forced me to return to Nanjing to recuperate, but pretending to be ill was something that happened later! "

"Mr. Wang Ge, what do you intend to do with this move?" Haikuan nodded as if he understood, but asked in confusion.

Wang Yue sighed softly and said bitterly: "We'll talk about this later! I'm calling you here this time. I just hope that you will postpone it until Li Yi's interrogation!"

"Why is this?" Haikuan opened his eyes in shock when he heard this request.

If Wangge Lao was cheating, he might have other considerations, but to prevent him from interrogating Li Yi, he would have to create some bad suspicions.

Although Jiangning County Government is now under siege, this move further proves that Li Yi has serious problems, and it is the perfect opportunity to take advantage of the victory.

But now Wang Yue suddenly stood up to stop him. Even though Wang Yue's reputation has become famous all over the world, he should not stop himself from hunting down the bad apples for the emperor, let alone protect villains like Li Yi.

It was at this time that Lei Ming hurried over with a letter.

Wang Yue opened the letter that had just been sent. When he saw the content in the letter, he was slightly stunned at first, and then sighed softly.

Although he also wanted to hold Shang Fang's sword and kill like he did back then, but the current situation was too special, so some things had to be done for the sake of the overall situation.

Haikuan looked at this seemingly ordinary letter, but he vaguely knew that the owner of this letter was extraordinary.

Wang Yue carefully put the letter into his sleeve, and then said seriously: "Haizhi County, do you think a small Jiangnan business can really make the court work so hard?"

Since he and Yin Zhi went to Jiangnan this year, both Nanzhili under his jurisdiction and Zhejiang, where Yin Zhi was defeated at the beginning, have seemed relatively calm so far.

The reason why they haven't made any big moves is not that they really can't move Jiangnan, but that the situation in Jiangnan is much more complicated than imagined.

"Your Majesty has great talents and strategies, and the elder is smart and capable. I am also very confused about this!" Hai Kuan also expressed his doubts, but changed the subject: "I am now the magistrate of Jiangning County, and I dare not do anything beyond my limits. We don’t dare to make random guesses about the imperial court’s intentions. Now that the imperial decree has been issued, and Li Yi is suspected of violating the New Deal, even if the county government is now surrounded by scholars from Nanzhili, the lower officials should still fulfill their duties loyally!”

Wang Yue looked at Haikuan seriously, and said with seriousness and sincerity: "I know that you are a competent local official and can bring justice to the people. But Li Yi not only threw the little peach red on Kyushu Island, Japan, but also the gold The culprit in the case, so I need more careful deployment and preparation!"

"Mr. Wang Ge, you have been pretending to be ill here. Are you asking if this move is His Majesty's arrangement?" Haikuan's heart moved slightly and he couldn't help asking.

Various signs indicate that the man in the Forbidden City is actually playing a big chess game, and his opponent may want to wipe out the entire Jiangnan official gentry group.

The reason why Wang Yue asked him to postpone Li Yi's trial was probably to cooperate with the man in the Forbidden City and for a longer-term goal.

He is not a pedantic person who only accepts death. If the court has long-term plans, then he will naturally have to cooperate with Wang Yue's actions.

Wang Yue did not answer directly, but said lightly: "There are some things that you are not involved in! The imperial court has plans. I always ask you to postpone the trial of Li Yi because of far-reaching reasons." consideration!”

"Since Mr. Ge has a long-term plan, I should obey my orders!" Hai Kuan knew that the other party did not need to tell him this, so he immediately accepted the order in a polite manner.

Although he could not figure out the specific plan above, Wang Yue was pretending to be ill in Nanjing, and now the emperor had timely issued a new decree, clearly targeting the Jiangnan official and gentry group every step of the way.

In fact, he also felt that a small fight could not solve Jiangnan's problems. Only by uncovering their crimes and beating them to pieces could they be remembered.

Today, Japan has massive silver mines. The imperial court abolished the silver standard to safeguard national interests. As a result, this group of people openly resisted the imperial decree for their own selfish interests.

Although Haikuan also had some concerns about the new coins, thinking of the wise and powerful emperor in the Forbidden City, he knew that only by assisting such an emperor well could the Ming Dynasty become truly prosperous.

Wang Yue was very satisfied with Hai Kuan's statement and said with a slight smile: "Haizhi County, as long as you hold the person captive first, when the time is right, I will deliver the evidence of the crime! With me here, you don't need to be afraid of anyone. !”

"I am at your disposal, sir!" Haikuan naturally agreed.

Wang Yue sent Hai Kuan away. It was because he admired Hai Kuan that he specifically called him over to say so much. Otherwise, he could suppress everything with just one sentence.

As for the postponement of Li Yi's trial, it was just to cooperate with the big action above, and also to attract bigger fish from the south of the Yangtze River, so that they could be caught in one catch.

"Mr. Ge, what are your orders?"

Just as Shi Haikuan left, a young man wearing a fighting fish suit was brought over by Gou Huowang.

This person was none other than Mou Bin, the Jin Yiwei who was once demoted by Emperor Hongzhi. Because of his outstanding performance in Beijing, when Wang Yue and Yin Zhi went south, he was personally appointed by Hongzhi to be the commander of Nanzhen Fusi.

Wang Yue looked Mou Bin up and down and said straight to the point: "I think someone will reveal the secret summoning of Hai Kuan, so I ask you to help keep an eye on the Nanjing Metropolitan Procuratorate!"

"Mr. Wangge, do you suspect that there is a spy around you?" Mou Bin was stunned at first and looked very shocked.

Wang Yue picked up the tea on the table, took a slow sip and said, "Exactly, that's why I trouble you Nanzhen Fusi this time to help me find out the traitor!"

"I obey my command!" Mou Bin knew that the matter was not trivial, so he nodded solemnly.

Wang Yue couldn't help but sigh as he watched Si Moubin, the commander of Nanzhen Fusi, striding away.

Although he already had a suspect in mind, for the sake of safety, he decided to set a trap. Or perhaps, he still doesn’t believe in the identity of the mole because he hasn’t truly recovered the stolen goods.

While the imperial court was taking steps, conflicts broke out within the Jiangnan official and gentry group. (End of chapter)