The Prosperous Era of Longwan

The deputy envoy Wang mentioned by the staff refers to Wang Yizhong, courtesy name Zhengshu, who was born in She County. He was a Jinshi in the 23rd year of Jiajing. He was promoted from Kaifeng to Jiangxi as deputy envoy.

He died in the battle when the rebels attacked Taihe a month ago. Before that, Wang Rui, the commander of the Jiangxi capital, received a message from Fujian and sent troops to escort 700 rebels including Guangbing, Huang Feng, Yuan San, etc. back to Fujian. However, they lost control halfway and united with thousands of refugees. The thieves attacked Taihe, thus causing this disaster.

No matter what, Wang Rui cannot escape the crime of dereliction of duty.

"My boss, no matter whether the people in the capital know what's going on in Ganzhou or not, we here have to kill the thieves who were caused by the rebels sent out by Wang Rui. As for the local ignorant people who follow them and cause trouble, they are all exiled. The thief is coercing him and doing it as a last resort, it has nothing to do with the government."

Speaking of which, if the people of Ganzhou were forced to rebel by the government due to taxes and servitude, he, the chief envoy, would also be at fault, no matter how big or small.

Yao Yiyuan naturally didn't want to take the blame. Why should he help take the blame for the bad things done by the officials of Ganzhou Prefecture?

Before, I was still thinking about how to explain the chaos, but now that I heard the suggestions from my staff, Yao Yiyuan thought it was feasible.

It doesn't matter if it's true or not, as long as you report it seriously.

However, Yao Yiyuan thought further. In order to bring trouble to Jiangxi, in addition to Wang Rui's mishandling and dereliction of duty, he also accused the officials in Fujian and Guangzhou of being incompetent and unable to bring peace to the local areas.

Yao Yiyuan felt that this plan was very clever. According to the wishes of his staff, he just made a fuss about this matter and sued Wang Rui.

Jiangxi was peaceful under his own rule, so how could he help Wang Rui and the mediocre people of Fujian and Guangxi take the blame?

"The situation in Jiangxi is worse. It will be easy for the boss to write a letter asking for the tax money to be used as military pay."

The staff member continued to come up with ideas.

The official document has just been rejected. It is definitely unrealistic to ask for money in the short term. We need to think about it in the long term. It is time to dig a hole and bury the people who can't deal with it first.

Yao Yiyuan nodded, then prepared pen, ink, paper and inkstone to start writing a letter.

Yao Yiyuan had a good relationship with Zhang Yi, the current military commander, and he complained to him and told him the real situation in Jiangxi, especially Wang Rui's dereliction of duty and the incompetence of Fujian and Guangdong officials. and other matters.

After writing the letter, he called his cronies and sent it to the capital overnight.

In a dozen days, the fasting ceremony hosted by Emperor Jiajing ended, and all the court officials returned to government affairs. However, bad news continued to come from Fujian, Guangdong and other places, which also frightened the court officials.

Zhang Lian's rebels have been sending troops to attack surrounding prefectures and counties in recent times. Although their activity areas are mainly in Fujian, they have also invaded Guangdong, Jiangxi and other places from time to time.

On this day, the left officer of the military department reported to Zhang Yi that the three provinces of Fujian, Guangxi, and Jiangxi were full of thieves. He begged the generals to use the excuse of recent years to suspend the reduction of military pay in Guangdong, Guangxi, and Jiangxi to prepare for the conquests there, so as not to send more troops to disturb the people. He also said that the deputy envoy When Wang Yizhong died and Wang Yingshi was captured, Wang Ruishi, commanded by Jiangxi Dusi, sent his troops to send rebel soldiers Yuan San and others. He also ordered Guang to attack the thieves and caused him to communicate with the thieves, thereby defeating our division. This crime is unforgivable.

Two days later, the censor of Jiangxi Province came to report that the war in Jiangxi was caused by Zhang Qimo, the governor of Fujian Province, who sent a message to the army gate to send Guang soldiers, Huang Feng, Yuan San and other seven hundred people to return, while the governor of Jiangxi Province sent Wang Ruixie, the governor of Jiangxi Province, to send them back. Yuan San and other 400 people were then appointed to control the situation in Rui. However, the bandits' thousands of thieves merged with each other and caused a serious problem. They also asked Li Tingzhan, the magistrate of Yushan, and Lu Tianyou, the magistrate of Yongfeng County, to arrest Qi Mo and abandon the city. , and please set up an additional garrison to station troops in Wan'an to protect the counties.

After analyzing the official documents sent from Jiangxi, the Ministry of War also concluded that Wang Rui had mishandled the situation and was guilty. Qi Mo was equally guilty as Rui, and Ting Zan and others were arrested. Regarding the additional Wan'an garrison, a report to Emperor Jiajing was required.

Emperor Jiajing agreed to all the reports submitted by the Ministry of War.

Emperor Jiajing would not refuse as long as it was conducive to annihilating Zhang Lian's rebels as soon as possible.

Not only did he order the patrol censors of Jiangxi and Fujian to arrest Wang Rui, Zhang Qimo and others to evacuate the capital, but he also ordered the governors to suppress the thieves and calm down the local area.

But even so, reports of prefectures and counties being attacked by rebels were still sent to the capital, making Emperor Jiajing very worried in Xiyuan.

Fortunately, good news finally came from the Xuanfu, which comforted the emperor's heart.

The prisoners captured the Xuan Mansion and entered several roads. The deputy commander-in-chief Ma Fang and other supervising soldiers defended him. They captured the chieftain Wu Heqi and others. Fourteen people were captured, eighteen were killed, and more than 240 horses were captured. The prisoners escaped. .

There were heads, prisoners, and seizures. This was a rare victory in the border town this year, but Emperor Jiajing was still not very happy.

It was on days like this that another thing happened that made Wei Guangde, who was content to stay in Prince Yu's Mansion, gain knowledge again.

In July of the 40th year of Jiajing's reign, the Imperial Heavenly Supervisor reported, "It is a solar eclipse, and rescue is not required for one minute and five seconds."

Yuan Wei, the Minister of Rites, immediately went on to report: "I heard that Tang Yixing said that the emperor's way has not changed. In ancient times, there was peace. If the sun did not eat or the moon changed, we would avoid it, or the five stars would hide under it to protect it from insults. , or the relationship is shallow, or when the yang is strong and the yin is weak in the solar calendar, you don’t eat, or when the virtue is not bright and there is a small eye, then the sky is hidden, but you don’t eat even though you have friendship, these four are all the source of the virtue education, Your Majesty Serving Heaven as a father, and serving the Sun as a brother, all the clouds retreat and all phenomena are radiant, so the sun is in a prosperous position, and the cloudy atmosphere disappears. Stopping from eating even a little is the same as not eating at all, and the ministers will not be allowed to rejoice."

On the first day of July, Wei Guangde heard the news of a solar eclipse early in the morning. Although it was only one and a half points, and according to later generations it was a partial eclipse, he still had some small expectations.

have a look.

The last solar eclipse was huge, almost total, but I was so focused on other things that I forgot to appreciate the eclipse.

This time it’s a partial solar eclipse, which is also good.

Therefore, Wei Guangde spent a day watching the sun in the courtyard of the palace, but Mao didn't even see a single bit of it.

According to Qin Tianjian, it is impossible to not see a solar eclipse of one minute and five seconds at all.

In ancient times, eclipses were measured in minutes and seconds, but this did not refer to the duration of the eclipse, but to the degree of the eclipse.

In the Ming Dynasty, eclipses were divided into ten points. If the eclipse was predicted to be ten points, it would be similar to what later generations called a "total eclipse." If the prediction was three points, the eclipse would cover approximately three-tenths.

This time it was another solar eclipse after the February solar eclipse, lasting one minute and five seconds, but in fact Wei Guangde did not see a solar eclipse occur at all.

At night, Wei Guangde, who was sleeping in bed, finally realized that it was not Yuan Wei who colluded with the Qintian Prison to create a farce to deceive the emperor.

Last time, Qin Tian Jian was making remarks about "not eating when he should be eating". In order to avoid unnecessary trouble, Prince Yu's Mansion helped to cooperate. In the end, Qin Tian Jian was not only not punished for his inaccurate prediction, but also received a reward.

Wei Guangde was a little suspicious at this time. Yuan Wei saw that the emperor was in a bad mood because of the news from the south, so he collaborated with Qin Tianjian to create auspicious signs to flatter the emperor.

Emperor Jiajing was obviously different from the previous Emperor Ming. He seemed to like these frivolous things.

Although there were speculations, Wei Guangde did not want to be a messenger of justice. He did not understand astronomy, so he could not be sure whether the report from the Qintian Supervisor was forged, let alone what good would it do?

Being a bad person makes the emperor unhappy and offends Yuan Wei and the people in Qin Tianjian.

However, after this incident, Wei Guangde also learned what it means to "go with what others like".

For this reason, Wei Guangde felt a little proud in his heart, thinking that he had seen through Yuan Wei's tricks.

Of course, Wei Guangde did not tell his guess to King Yu and others, nor did he think about how to copy such auspiciousness, Emperor Bojiajing Longyan was delighted.

"I heard that the Ministry of War is discussing who should be appointed to the post of Wan'an garrison. Guangde, have you received a letter from home recently?"

On this day, when Wei Guangde arrived at Prince Yu's Mansion, he was pulled aside by Zhang Juzheng and asked in a low voice.

"Wan'an Guard?"

Wei Guangde was just stunned for a moment before he understood the meaning of Zhang Juzheng's words.

To serve as a garrison, the rank is at least the level of a guard commander. Even though he has been an official in Beijing for many years, his father's family is still a thousand households and he has not found a way to be promoted.

When asked by Zhang Juzheng, Wei Guangde thought of this matter, and it seemed that he could do something about it.

However, Wei Guangde quickly gave up this idea and established a Wan'an garrison, which was linked to the annihilation of Zhang Lian's group of rebels.

Can Zhang Lian and his gang of rebels be suppressed?

Not easy to suppress.

Zhang Lian would indeed find a stronghold and build his base in the mountains of Fujian, making it impossible for officers and soldiers to attack in large numbers. The terrain was too complicated.

Not to mention that the defense only needs to protect the place. When you get to that position, if the military order tells you to go out to fight, you have to send troops to fight. Do you think you can refuse to go out to fight just because you are a local security force?

That would be a great sin.

To be honest, Wei Guangde doesn't want his father to get involved in the war again. This is no joke.

Although he was in the capital, Wei Guangde had read the Fujian Report and knew that Zhang Lian's men had trapped more than 100,000 desperadoes.

Don't look at the hundreds of thousands of government troops stationed in Fujian, Jiangxi and other places, but what kind of combat power is that?

Although it is not clear how strong Zhang Lian's group is, you can tell from the battle reports that they seem to be much stronger than the official army. More than a dozen prefectures and counties have been captured by the rebels, but it seems that the enemy has not started yet. The meaning of expanding the territory is to occupy the city, loot it and then retreat to the mountains.

Thinking of this, Wei Guangde smiled and shook his head.

"That group of rebels has a habit of pretending to be poor people and stealing the city. When my army arrives, it will retreat to the mountains and resist. I can fight this battle easily."

Wei Guangde opened his mouth and said, "I didn't receive the letter from home. Although I don't know if my father meant this, but even if he really meant it, I wouldn't help him run this matter."

"Oh, that's fine."

Zhang Juzheng didn't say much, just nodded.

"Uncle, but Mr. Xu Ge has a way to talk to Yang Shangshu and recommend him to the post of Wan'an garrison?"

Wei Guangde asked casually.

"Your Majesty approved the report from the Ministry of War, but there were obvious differences in who should be appointed to the post of Wan'an garrison. Most of the vacant generals had suffered heavy losses in the war to suppress bandits and Japanese invaders, while Wan'an garrison was responsible for preventing The rebels' invasion of Jiangxi is a heavy responsibility."

Suffering heavy losses actually means that these people have suffered defeats in battles. The Ministry of War has judged that these people are incompetent, so they are unwilling to re-activate them.

In the absence of external intervention, the Ministry of War naturally hopes to select a highly capable military attaché to serve as the Wan'an garrison. Otherwise, if there are constant reports of defeats, Emperor Jiajing may have doubted their abilities that day.

"I heard from the teacher yesterday that the Ministry of War has begun to expand the scope of selecting generals. If the Shandai family is interested, they should talk to me as soon as possible. We can also operate it in the Ministry of War. If it doesn't work, let my teacher come forward."

Zhang Juzheng continued.

Wei Guangde nodded slightly, knowing that the official career of a military general was actually the same as that of a civilian official. It was a carrot and a pit, and promotion was extremely difficult.

It was like this when it was still a hundred households, not to mention that now my father is a thousand households.

After finally adding a new military position, it seemed like an opportunity. However, thinking about the war he would face when he took office, Wei Guangde still strengthened his mind and let his father stay in Jiujiang Wei. That was the foundation of the family. .

General, it's better not to move away easily.

While making tea and chatting with Zhang Juzheng, Yin Shizhen next door was still giving a lecture to King Yu.

"By the way, I heard that His Majesty intends to add more officials to the palace. Has Shandai heard about this?"

While talking, Zhang Juzheng suddenly said something else.

"A new lecturer?"

Wei Guangde was a little surprised. In fact, as King Yu grew older, his basic coursework had been completed long ago. Now most of the lectures given by Yin Shizhen, Zhang Juzheng and others were to review the past and learn the new. Who would have thought that Emperor Jiajing would arrange for people to be employed in the palace at this time? Talk about officialdom.

Curious, Wei Guangde smiled and asked, "Who?"

"The Hanlin Academy edited and compiled Tang Ruji."

Zhang Juzheng replied.

"He."

When Zhang Juzheng named someone, Wei Guangde certainly knew who it was.

Speaking of which, Tang Ruyi can be regarded as Zhang Juzheng's descendant, but he is his senior.

Ruji of the Tang Dynasty, whose courtesy name was Siji and whose nickname was Xiaoyu, was from Lanxi. He was the son of Tang Long, the former Minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, and he was the number one scholar in the 29th year of Jiajing.

However, this man's status in the Hanlin Academy is a bit embarrassing. As for the reason, it is because of his father's relationship.

According to the Hanlin Academy, Tang Long, the father of Tang Ruji, had an irreconcilable relationship with Yan Song, the current chief minister. It was Xia Yan's idea to depose Tang's father.

Well, that means that Tang Long should be very close to Yan Song, so being affected in the fight between Yan Song and Xia Yan seems to be an ironclad proof that Tang Long and Yan Song have a good relationship.

Knowing who it was, Wei Guangde couldn't help but become more curious and asked: "Is it the suggestion from Lord Chief Assistant?"

"I don't know about that."

Zhang Juzheng shook his head and said, "Your Majesty asked about Tang Ruji's situation in the Imperial Academy, and he laughed and said that Chen Yiqin and Dingyou always have to arrange someone to take over."

"Oh, that's how it is."

Although he could not be sure whether it was the emperor's intention or whether it was the input of others, Wei Guangde felt that it seemed a foregone conclusion that Tang Ruji would enter Prince Yu's palace.

After all, Emperor Jiajing had this intention.

At this moment, footsteps sounded outside the door, and a waiter came in a hurry.

When they arrived outside the door, they heard people outside saying: "Mr. Zhang, Mr. Wei, the news just came from the palace. Yutian found Xiangrui there. Yutian official Yan Shoufu has gone to see it in person and said he is going to the west." Yuan Xianrui.”

"What auspiciousness does Oden have there?"

Wei Guangde and Zhang Juzheng looked at each other and asked curiously.

"Jiahe has eighty-one stems with two ears, six plants with three ears, and one plant with four ears."

The waiter outside the door replied.

"Haha. In the early years, it was the white deer, the white turtle, and the nectar from the sky. Finally, it's Jiahe's turn."

Zhang Juzheng laughed softly here.

Wei Guangde also reacted and echoed in a low voice: "This time we came out of Jiahe, next time we should go to Ruimai, and let's see if the river is clear, and there will be a phoenix and a unicorn."