The Prosperous Era of Longwan

When farmers donate land to aristocratic families, they sell the land to the gentry for free or at a very low price. The two parties then agree that the land will belong to the gentry from now on, but it will also be the permanent tenant land of the farmers, who can continue to cultivate it at regular intervals. Just pay the ground rent, and the owner is not allowed to take it back.

If we use the perspective of later generations, it is to separate the ownership and use rights of land.

Land ownership belonged to the gentry family, while farmers had the right to use the land and were not affected by the master family.

In this way, farmers can feel at ease and trust in dedicating their land to their owners.

At this time, the peasants completed the identity transformation from owner-cultivators to tenants, relying on the gentry to escape a series of assessed taxes, and further, they directly became the master's servants to escape the Ding tax.

This is what Wei Guangde lamented before.

There were businessmen such as Sun Tang and Zhu Gui in Huating County. In order to facilitate business, they donated their own land to the Xu family to avoid taxes and servitude. Later, they received more than 20,000 taels of silver from the Xu family to do business. For this reason, their names were all changed to Xu. Tang and Xu Gui said to the outside world that they were members of the Xu family, making it easier for them to go south and north to do business.

But doing business is bound to have risks. It is normal to make profits and lose money, but after losing money, conflicts between the two parties arise.

It's just that in such a lawsuit, how could ordinary people like them win against the Xu family.

In the past, they were well-received in various yamen in the name of the Xu family, but it is different now.

Therefore, taking advantage of the people's proposal to withdraw from the land, they also reported their own contributions and mixed in to try to overturn the case.

"How much land does the Xu family have?"

After reading these letters, Wei Guangde folded them and handed them to Yin Shizhen, and then asked.

"I haven't found it out. It's really hard to find out. It said tens of thousands of acres, some said hundreds of thousands of acres, and the most said it was more than 200,000 acres. However, the ones that can be found in Xu Mansion are more than 60,000 acres. , the others are all in the names of the Xu family’s nephews and family members, there should be more than a hundred thousand, but it’s hard to be sure of more than two hundred thousand.”

Yin Shizhen said.

"Good boy, there are more fields than Yan Ge's hometown."

Wei Guangde couldn't help but sigh: "I remember when it was reported that the Yan family owned more than 27,300 acres of land, mountains and ponds, they were denounced as traitors. Who does Mr. Xu Ge mean?"

"Yeah, who would have thought that the Xu family has such a rich family background."

Yin Shizhen also sighed. Speaking of Yan Song, he couldn't help but ask on a whim: "By the way, how is Mr. Yan Ge doing now?"

Hearing Yin Shizhen mention Yan Song, Wei Guangde looked at him for a moment before sighing and saying: "Old Yan Ge's health is not good either. It should be in the past two years."

"Is he still in his hometown? Now that he has been declassified as a citizen, life must be difficult."

I don't know what Yin Shizhen was thinking at this time, but looking at his expression, he seemed a bit sad.

"Old Yan Ge is not here at Fenyi."

Unexpectedly, Wei Guangde shook his head and said: "I heard that after Yan Shifan was beheaded in the capital and his family property was confiscated, he burst into tears and felt that he was ashamed to live in his hometown.

From a powerful official of a dynasty to a commoner, this contrast can be imagined, and the resulting contempt from his tribe, the scorn of his enemies, etc.

With the help of his clansmen, Mr. Yan Ge took his grandson Yan Hong from Yuanshui in his hometown into the Gan River, crossed Poyang, and went upstream to get off the boat in Huangzhou. Then he hired a wheelbarrow and drove overland from Xinzhou and Macheng via Xiaojie Ridge, the pass of the Dabie Mountains, went through a dusty and difficult journey, and finally arrived at Xizhou. "

"Xizhou? Yan Ge is always in Xizhou? Who did he defect to?"

Yin Shizhen said suspiciously.

"Wang Shizhong, the former minister of the Ministry of Industry, was a disciple of Mr. Yan Ge. Because of this relationship, he was pretty good in the Ministry of Industry. He was promoted to official position due to physical reasons a few years before the collapse of the Yan family.

Later, because he was not too involved in Yan Shifan's case, he was not investigated. It was him who Mr. Yan Ge chose to defect to. "

Wei Guangde introduced.

"Old Yange, why don't you go thousands of miles to Xizhou?"

Yin Shizhen was still strange. You must know that in Jiangxi, Yan Song's disciples have many old friends. Even if their family is in decline, it is not difficult to have a meal and a roof.

"Maybe he is worried about being held accountable by the late emperor again."

Wei Guangde could only guess, "After all, Yan Shifan was killed, and no one knows whether the late emperor had the intention to kill him. It is only right to run away to avoid disaster."

"Did Shandai send someone to escort him all the way?"

Yin Shizhen understood at this time. Before, he had always thought that Yan Song was living in Fenyi's hometown. After all, he was an old minister who had fallen into decline and had a grudge against them. It would be good not to take the opportunity to add insult to injury.

Today, I heard that Wei Guangde knew so much about Yan Song's whereabouts. It is impossible to say that Wei Guangde did not send someone to follow him.

Moreover, the road from Fenyi to Xizhou is not far and there is no life on the road.

Hearing Yin Shizhen's words, Wei Guangde did not deny it, but nodded and said: "After all, he is a fellow from Jiangxi, and I really can't bear to see him fall down like this.

Although people say that he is a traitor, you and I both know that most of the crimes actually have nothing to do with him. Even if he did it, he was actually just following orders and suffering for others.

As for Yan Shifan, his crime deserved death. Needless to say, he had already received the punishment he deserved, beheading and ransacking his home. "

"Then how does Wang Shizhong treat his teacher?"

Yin Shizhen asked a little sadly.

"It's not bad. He puts people at home and provides him with three meals a day. He can be considered a kind and righteous person."

Wei Guangde replied, "After he arrived in Xizhou, I only sent people to check on him once or twice a year. The most recent report was that he was hairless, beardless, and haggard. He doesn't have much life left."

"You, you didn't tell the truth in front of His Majesty the year before last, and you weren't afraid that others would find out and accuse you of deceiving the Emperor."

Yin Shizhen pointed at Wei Guangde and sighed.

"Yan Shifan has already suffered the sins of the Yan family, so there is no need to make it difficult for a dying man."

Wei Guangde chuckled, but his eyes showed a hint of pity.

They were talking about the first year of Longqing, not long after Emperor Longqing ascended the throne. Before Emperor Daxing was buried, one day he suddenly thought of the humiliation Yan Song suffered when he controlled the government, so the emperor issued an order to arrest Yan Song and bring him to Beijing for questioning.

According to the order, the palace officials went south to Jiangxi to pick up people. Wei Guangde did not stop him, but continued to persuade Emperor Longqing to be noble and there was no need to embarrass an 80-year-old man and ruin his reputation.

When Jiangxi reported that Yan Song had not been found, they all thought that Jiangxi officials had teamed up to hide him.

Thinking that most of the people there were veterans, and with Wei Guangde's persuasion, Emperor Longqing gave up and never took care of Yan Song's affairs again.

"Eh? Aren't you talking about Mr. Xu Ge? Why did you get involved with Mr. Yan Ge, haha"

Wei Guangde suddenly laughed.

After putting away his smile, Wei Guangde thought about it and asked, "Hai Rui doesn't know how he will deal with this matter in the end, so we should not waste all our efforts."

"Probably not. He is already sorting out the files sent by various governments. If he doesn't care about this matter, why bother? He can just return it to the various governments for self-examination."

Yin Shizhen smiled.

After saying this, Yin Shizhen suddenly said with a solemn expression: "By the way, I forgot to ask you. Yesterday, the military department sent a resignation letter to Ouyang Yijin, the leader of the matter. Did you and him discuss this?"

Wei Guangde nodded slightly, "Brother Si Zhi came to see me before this happened. I originally planned to let him go out for a while to avoid Gao Gong first, but he was worried about it being unsafe and insisted on returning to his hometown, and I did not continue to persuade him."

Wei Guangde briefly explained what Ouyang Yijing had come to him to inquire about and discuss countermeasures, and there was nothing bad to say.

Believe in the will, there are many officials who have no masters, and many people may not be able to sleep well.

In fact, he thought that Gao Gong and Xu Jie were not helping each other during the fight, but he didn't know that Gao Gong was jealous of him.

Not only Wei Guangde, but also Chen Yiqin and Yin Shizhen.

If he knew the inside story, he would not talk about it so casually now. Instead, he would try to contact Zhang Juzheng to make a concerted effort to prepare for war with Gao Gong.

Of course, he did not expect that Zhang Juzheng at this time was not thinking about how to deal with Gao Gong, who was about to return to the court, but was trying to get Gao Gong and Chen Yiqin to fight.

But what Yin Shizhen said next surprised Wei Guangde.

"Yang Shangshu also submitted a begging memorial today, requesting to resign and return to his hometown to recuperate."

When the words came out of Yin Shizhen's mouth, Wei Guangde immediately frowned and started thinking.

If the current power in the court is that Zhang Juzheng has the help of Yang Bo and Huo Yi, he should be able to manipulate Gao Gong in the court. However, if Yang Bo leaves the court and only Zhang Juzheng is left, then Huo Yi may not be able to do it. Standing firmly behind Zhang Juzheng.

Under such changes, Zhang Juzheng would not be able to defeat Gao Gong. After a few rounds, Zhang Juzheng would also resign and return to his hometown. So what else is there to do?

Li Chunfang didn't have much responsibility to begin with and didn't take care of things very much. Faced with Gao Gong's aggressiveness, she had no choice but to give up. Who will Gao Gong be targeted in the future?

Wei Guangde had a premonition for the first time at this time that it seemed that his group might fight Gao Gong in the near future.

Of course, whether it will actually come to this point in the end depends on what Gao Gong will look like after returning to the court.

However, based on his understanding of Gao Gong, others can only accept his opinions, and his opinions cannot be criticized by others and can only be followed.

To be honest, it is difficult to get along with colleagues like this.

This was also the reason why not many people supported him at the beginning. Everyone was more willing to deal with Xu Jie than to cooperate with Gao Gong.

"What's wrong with Yang Shangshu?"

Wei Guangde asked casually.

"have no idea."

Yin Shizhen shook his head and replied, "Would you like to go sit with him later?"

"I saw him a few days ago, but I didn't see any physical discomfort. It couldn't be because of his high arch."

Wei Guangde asked knowingly.

"This is what is said outside. When Gao Gong and Xu Jie were hiding at home, Yang Shangshu petitioned His Majesty to retain Mr. Xu Ge."

Yin Shizhen said, "He requested to return to his hometown to recuperate at this time, but it directly messed up the court situation."

"What will happen if Zhang Shuda tries to please Gao Suqing?"

Wei Guangde finally asked this question.

Yin Shizhen looked solemn and said in a low voice: "I am just worried about this, why don't we call Yifu to get together tonight and think of countermeasures?

Although once there is trouble in Jiangnan, Zhang Shuda will have to fight with Gao Suqing, but it is very likely that he will be alone and forced to compromise with him. Then the cabinet will change. "

It was their plan to use the Xu Jie case to let Gao Gong seize the opportunity for revenge. When the time comes for Gao Gong and Zhang Juzheng to fight in the court, and with the support of Yang Bo behind them, they will be evenly matched.

"If it is really because of Gao Suqing, then Yang Bo should have made up his mind to leave to avoid trouble."

Wei Guangde said.

As a rule, when an important minister like Yang Bo resigns, he must go through the process of three speeches and three refutations. The emperor will only approve the fourth resignation.

This trip only took a few days, and it would not be able to delay Gao Gong's return to the court.

Yes, Wei Guangde calculated the time. It should take a month from Gao Gong receiving the order to arriving in Beijing. Yang Bo had already left the capital by that time, and there was no chance that the two of them would meet.

"We forgot about this when we were designing it. We should have recommended Yang Bo to the cabinet."

Wei Guangde said regretfully, "As long as he joins the cabinet, he will have the capital to compete with Gao Gong. With his qualifications, to be honest, he may not be afraid of Gao Gong.

Unfortunately, just because of his qualifications, neither Mr. Xu Ge nor I dared to think about letting him join the cabinet. "

Although Yang Bo has always been a military and civilian official, he is a man of long sleeves and good at dancing. His disciples in the court have connections not only with the Ministry of War, but also with the six ministries and five temples. His reach is only as wide as that of Yan Song and Xu Jie.

When Yang Bo served as Minister of the Ministry of War for nine years, Xu Jie did not recommend him to join the cabinet, but transferred him to the Ministry of Personnel. This made sense.

Wei Guangde understood it at the time, but did not say that he would have to stay in the position of Minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs for nine years. By then, Yang Bo would have only a few days left to live.

Yang Bo was born on May 24, the fourth year of Zhengde reign of Emperor Wuzong of Ming Dynasty. He was promoted to Jinshi in the eighth year of Jiajing reign of Emperor Shizong of Ming Dynasty. He is sixty years old this year.

If he stays in the position of Minister of the Ministry of Personnel for another six years, he will be sixty-six years old. What else can he do as an old man?

"Okay, that's it for now. I'll go to Yifu's place to talk about this. Come to my house tonight and I'll arrange food and drinks."

Yin Shizhen stood up at this time, put the letter back into his sleeve and said.

"Ying Tianfu needs to pay close attention to it. If Hai Rui doesn't report the case to the court, we have to find a way to push it aside."

Wei Guangde said.

Now that the situation in the government is getting more and more chaotic, he already has a sense of powerlessness, and it all stems from Yang Bo's sudden resignation, which directly breaks the balance of power in their imagination.

Wei Guangde stood up to see Yin Shizhen out, but when he walked to the door, Wei Guangde said softly: "We can't wait until Gao Suqing returns to the court. We have to keep a low profile for a while, at least we can't confront him head-on."

"Yeah, I'm afraid Chen Hong is about to turn over now, hehe."

Yin Shizhen changed the subject to the palace.

Wei Guangde nodded, "Those eunuchs are used to following the wind, and now they are frantically suppressing Chen Hong. When Gao Suqing comes back, I think many of them will come back to flatter Chen Hong.

But there is nothing to be afraid of. After all, Teng Xiang will never reconcile with Chen Hong. "

"Haha, that's right. Chen Hong is targeting Teng Xiang. Unless he takes the initiative to give up his position, there will be no discussion at all."

Yin Shizhen nodded and smiled, then he cupped his hands to Wei Guangde and went to Chen Yiqin's side.