The Prosperous Era of Longwan

Jiangnan is good not only for its wealth and beauty, but also for its gathering of humanities, inheriting the mantle of Chinese civilization, and creating a spiritual habitat. Jiangnan gardens are the realistic carrier of this spiritual home and a "peach blossom garden" within reach.

Humble Administrator's Garden, Master of Nets Garden, Zhan Garden, Jichang Garden, Ge Garden, Yu Garden, Guyi Garden, etc. are gathered in the south of the Yangtze River. They are a geographical fit and a cultural destination.

Gardens are different from palaces in that they are integrated with nature.

This kind of space where you can touch the mountains and rivers and relax leisurely is increasingly favored by elegant and wealthy people.

During the Wei and Jin Dynasties, the scholar class advocated quiet conversation and seclusion, looking for a pastoral life away from war and persecution, and attached themselves to the mountains, rivers and farmhouses, which became a popular social ideal at that time.

Tao Yuanming's "Peach Blossom Spring" in the Eastern Jin Dynasty constructed an utopia that people yearned for. He also injected new ideas into private gardens with his poems: "It is good to meditate on the garden, and the world is good."

During the Sui and Tang Dynasties, scholars represented by Wang Wei and Bai Juyi integrated the beauty of poetry, calligraphy and painting into gardening practice. Wang Wei's "Wangchuan Villa" and Bai Juyi's "White Lotus Village" organically combined the beauty of architecture with the beauty of poetry and painting. Gradually, a more distinctive garden form was formed.

During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the Jiangnan region was economically prosperous and culturally prosperous, and private garden construction sprang up in large numbers.

First, the prosperity of Jiangnan created a large demand for private gardens; second, the prosperity of Jiangnan culture gave birth to a group of scholars who were well versed in traditional culture, had elegant artistic tastes, and understood the disciplines of construction.

"Jiangnan Garden Chronicles" says: "Wherever there are wealthy officials, great officials, and intellectuals in our country, they are almost all home to private gardens, and most of their essence is actually gathered in a corner of the south of the Yangtze River."

The book discusses more than 50 gardens in Suzhou, Yangzhou, Changshu, Wuxi, Nanxiang, Jiading, Nanjing, Hangzhou, Nanxun, Jiaxing, etc., representing the highest achievements of Chinese classical gardens. They are unique in style, small in size but large in size. They integrate landscape, poetry and painting into one, have a layout that harmonizes nature and man, and have the wild charm of pastoral farmhouses, developing the beauty of classical gardens to the extreme.

The Jiangnan gardens of this period had the architectural characteristics of integrating a house and a garden, including a residential part for daily living and a garden part for leisure and entertainment. The garden was usually built to the north or northwest of the residential area, commonly known as the "back garden".

In the home garden, you can not only cultivate quality in the garden and enjoy the tranquility of the woods and springs, but also serve your parents without violating filial piety.

The famous Yuyuan Garden in Shanghai is the garden built next to the house by Pan Yunduan, the Right Chief Minister of Sichuan Province in the Ming Dynasty, after he was dismissed from his post and returned to his hometown in the name of pleasing his relatives.

In the eighth year of Zhengde in the Ming Dynasty, Wang Xianchen, the imperial censor who returned to his hometown after being dismissed from office, built a house on the foundation of Dahong Temple. He named it Humble Government based on the meaning of "Building a house and planting trees..." in Pan Yue's "Xianju Fu" in the Western Jin Dynasty. garden.

Xu Jia, who was born in a large Xu family in Suzhou, made a huge bet with the son of Wang Xianchen, the first owner of the Humble Administrator's Garden, betting on the Purple Zhi Garden and the Humble Administrator's Garden. In the end, Xu Jia won the Humble Administrator's Garden and became the owner of the garden. The eldest brother Seo Gyu moved in together.

During this period, Suzhou gardens were most famous for their works by Xu and Wen.

Of course, the Xu family in Suzhou and the Xu family in Songjiang are not from the same family, but at this time in the Dongya Hall of Zizhi Garden, Xu Fan and Xu Kun, who were wanted by Hai Rui, were sitting opposite each other, drinking tea and enjoying the scenery.

Just as Hai Rui thought, the Xu family's children did secretly enter Suzhou and live in various gardens.

"Brother, actually I think dad is too stupid to be afraid of Hai Rui. Even if you and I go out and stand on the street, will Hai Rui dare to arrest you and me? Without the decree of the imperial court, why would he arrest me?"

Xu Kun was forced here by Xu Fan. If it wasn't for his elder brother who suppressed him, he might have ignored Hai Rui's documents and went out on the streets unscrupulously.

"Second brother, now and then, I was wrong when you said that Hai Rui didn't dare to arrest you. After all, we both have no official positions now, so why can't we arrest people?"

Xu Fan just reminded him loudly.

Xu Fan, whose courtesy name was Lu Qing, was the only one of the four children of Xu Jie who was born to his first wife, Mrs. Shen.

When he was older, he was born as an official in Yinshi. He was initially appointed as the governor of the Right Army, and experienced other positions in the Zongren Mansion. In the 37th year of Jiajing, Xu Fan moved to the prefecture of Guangnan, Yunnan. Xu Jie thought that he was old and his son had been lonely since he was a child. Please change the rank for me.

When Shu Shang was invited, the official department changed Xu Fan to Baocheng, and later he paid homage to Taichang Shaoqing, Yin Yizi.

Xu Jie remembered Yan Song's lesson of losing his son and not allowing his sons and nephews to develop in the government. In the second year of Longqing, Xu Jie became an official, and Xu Fan returned to his hometown with his father.

In fact, Xu Fan's growth experience is similar to that of Yan Shifan. Both of them did not pass the imperial examination, and they always used their talents to protect their careers, and their "official fortunes were prosperous."

It's just that Yan Shifan was too dazzling at that time, and with Yan Shifan's lessons in front of him, Xu Jie also paid attention to educating Xu Fan at all times, so he didn't leave any bad reputation in the capital.

Xu Kun's situation is similar to that of his brother Xu Fan, except that his official position is Shang Baojian.

In the past, the two brothers had official positions. Although their rank was not as high as that of Hai Rui, Hai Rui was really not able to arrest people. But now that they have both resigned, they are not as good as before without official protection. .

"I said at the beginning that I didn't dare to come back and stayed in the capital."

As soon as Xu Kun opened his mouth, he was interrupted by Xu Fan, "It's more dangerous to stay in the capital. It's not like you don't know that. Now that Gao Xinzheng has returned to the cabinet, my uncle may not be able to stop him.

If you and I stay there, I'm afraid we won't be able to escape the crime of being framed, so we'd better write a letter home and settle the matter as soon as possible."

"But you see that the third child is an official in Nanjing. How dare Hai Rui go to Nanjing to arrest people?"

Xu Kun still said angrily, not thinking at all that what he did violated the "Da Ming Law" and was a crime. Instead, he thought that his third brother Xu Ying was an official in the Nanjing Criminal Department, and Hai Rui was not going to arrest anyone. The third child’s name.

Isn't this just a persimmon looking for someone who's weak and bullying his two brothers when they see they have no official position?

Xu Fan was silent after hearing this. In fact, he also regretted a little. He didn't dare to resign and return to his hometown with his father. Instead, he should have worked as an official in Nanjing. With the protection of his official body, would Hai Rui still dare to act so unscrupulously?

The two brothers saw that the situation was not right, and received a letter from Xu Jie asking them to avoid the situation first. They made many choices, and finally ran to Suzhou, where Hai Rui took care of them to avoid the disaster.

Of course, ordinary gardens are looked down upon, but this is not the Zizhi Garden built by the Xu family in Suzhou. It has a good reputation and is just a good place to stay for a few days.

In the history of Suzhou gardens, evidence can be found so far that Zizhi Garden was designed by two great calligraphers and painters, Wen Zhengming and Qiu Ying.

The art of Chinese calligraphy and painting was at its peak in Suzhou during the Ming Dynasty. Zhong Zhengming, the calligrapher and painter of the Ming Dynasty, was the leading figure, and Qiu Ying had very good drawing skills.

In this sense, the documentary significance and artistic value of Zizhi Garden are very great.

With the painter's aesthetic taste, he used traditional pen and ink to outline the layout of the entire garden, achieving the pure and typical freehand landscape style of the Ming Dynasty in Zizhi Garden.

The most prominent garden builders in the Ming Dynasty were the Wen family and the Xu family. Xu Feng built the Zizhi Garden, his cousin Xu Taishi built the Liuyuan Garden, and his younger brother Xu Jia took over the Humble Administrator's Garden and became the second owner of the garden.

The Zizhi Garden built by Xu Feng and the Humble Administrator's Garden built by Wang Xianchen were only more than ten years apart. They are two famous gardens in Suzhou.

After the completion of the Zizhi Garden, the stone-stacked construction was unparalleled in the Wu Dynasty. According to Wang Zhideng's "Zizhi Garden Records", every spring, every stone, every crocodile and every inscription are all exquisite and exquisite; the walls are carved with embroidery, the aragonite paving is green, and the green and gold are green. The thread is extremely ingenious.

However, such a famous garden was burned down by fire after only a hundred years of existence, leaving no traces at all.

"This Zizhi Garden is worthy of being a famous garden in Suzhou. It's fate that you and I stay here. Don't think about things outside and just wait with peace of mind."

Although Xu Fan was a little dissatisfied, he still tried his best to appease Xu Kun.

What they didn't know was that just outside Zizhi Garden, there were several figures, but they were just observing from a distance and did not take any action.

Beijing city, cabinet.

Wei Guangde was dealing with government affairs when he heard voices coming from outside the door and looked up unconsciously.

The speaker, Wei Guangde, was very familiar with him. He was assisting Chen Yiqin this time, but he didn't know what he was doing here at this time. So before anyone could come in, Wei Guangde stood up and greeted him out.

As soon as he arrived at the door, Wei Guangde saw Chen Yiqin coming over.

"Brother Yifu, please come in and sit down."

Wei Guangde greeted Chen Yiqin, turned to Lu Bu behind him and said, "Quickly make some tea and bring it up."

After everyone sat down and Lu Bu served tea and retreated, Chen Yiqin took out a memorial from his sleeve and handed it to Wei Guangde.

At first, Wei Guangde was a little confused and didn't know what was going on. But after taking a closer look, he understood that Emperor Longqing wanted to buy jewelry and jade again, and the Ministry of Revenue sent a petition to the emperor to take back the order.

Wei Guangde probably understood why Chen Yiqin came to see him, but he couldn't get involved in this matter.

"Shan Loan, this is the third time this year that your Majesty has asked the Ministry of Household Affairs to purchase treasures. We cannot continue like this."

Before Wei Guangde could speak, Chen Yiqin expressed his support. He supported Liu Tiqian and could not allow the emperor to do whatever he wanted and spend money for his own pleasure.

In fact, no matter what the emperor wants to buy or how to spend money, as long as the money from the inner court is used, the outer court can't say anything. But now he wants the Ministry of Revenue to give him money. With the current financial situation, there is no money for him to spend.

After looking at the names of Chen Yiqin and Yin Shizhen, Wei Guangde understood that he was planning to get the cabinet ministers to sign the memorial together.

"Brother Yifu, this matter is a bit difficult to handle."

Wei Guangde said with some embarrassment: "I wonder if you know that His Majesty may already be dissatisfied with Liu Shangshu. If you and I sign the memorial, I'm afraid it will have the opposite effect and make His Majesty even more impatient with him."

Therefore, Wei Guangde told him that Emperor Longqing had summoned him to the Palace of Qianqing to ask about the income and expenditure of the imperial court over the years.

"If we want to check the income and expenditure of the imperial court, we should ask the Ministry of Revenue, but His Majesty came to ask me instead. One can imagine his attitude towards Liu Shangshu. If this matter goes wrong, His Majesty will think that we are colluding and working together to deceive him."

Finally, Wei Guangde reminded him.

Chen Yiqin also frowned slightly at this matter. Of course he understood Wei Guangde's concerns, but he still asked reluctantly: "What if all the cabinet ministers signed their names?"

"Although His Majesty may accept this matter, Liu Shangshu's resignation is not far away."

Wei Guangde replied.

"This is difficult to handle."

Chen Yiqin said with some annoyance.

Nowadays, the most difficult position for officials in the six ministries is the household ministry, because there are not many who are proficient in finance, and the court cannot make ends meet.

It is easy to replace someone, but it is difficult to find a replacement.

"Cross out the name and send it directly to the palace."

Wei Guangde had no choice but to suggest that he did not want Chen Yiqin and Yin Shizhen to harm the emperor at this time.

"Since the matter is serious, we'd better go to Zhengfu's place to discuss whether we should jointly sign."

Chen Yiqin was shaken in his heart and immediately spoke.

"good."

Wei Guangde agreed, then stood up and walked to Yin Shizhen's room next to him with Chen Yiqin.

At this time, Gao Gong was not in the cabinet, but went to the Ministry of Personnel.

Emperor Longqing's decree was initially just to act as an agent, but when Yang Bo took office, the decree given to Gao Gong had been changed to "zhangbu", which means that Gao Gong's title of Minister of Rites was not an additional title to improve his rank, but a real authority.

Therefore, Gao Gong is now not only a bachelor of Wuyingdian, but also a minister of the Ministry of Personnel, the kind with real power.

Now that he has become the real Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, Gao Gong naturally has to run in both directions. Although some official documents can be sent from the Ministry of Personnel to the Cabinet for his review, for the discussion of some matters, people cannot be recruited from the Ministry of Personnel to the Cabinet.

Of course, ministry matters are best resolved within the ministry.

Therefore, Gao Gong would go to the Ministry of Civil Affairs from time to time to deal with some controversial government affairs.

When he was leaving the house, Wei Guangde remembered this and asked in a low voice, "Are you sure that Gao Suqing will sign this memorial?"

"As long as everyone signs, he will not fail to sign, even if he doesn't want to, he will write."

Chen Yiqin smiled and said: "Didn't you notice? He has changed a lot this time when he came back. He is no longer the same as before. Everything is based on his own will, forcing others to agree with his opinions, otherwise they will be dissatisfied with you. "

"The right person will get many help, but the wrong person will get little help. What happened to Mr. Xu Ge last time taught him clearly."

Wei Guangde smiled.

"Yes, he finally understands, but in the long run, his power will become even greater and more difficult to check and balance."

Chen Yiqin sighed.

After seeing Yin Shizhen and knowing his interests, he remained silent for a long time before expressing a view similar to Wei Guangde's. It was better not to get involved in the Hu Bu's petition.

It is obvious that the emperor will not have any attitude towards the Ministry of Finance returning his order now, and may even praise him, but in fact, he will only hate Liu Tiqian more in his heart, and his position as minister is no longer stable.

If the cabinet gets involved at this time, there may be consequences.

Just as they were discussing the matter in Yin Shizhen's room, Xu Jie's messenger also arrived in the capital.

The messengers had all lived with Xu Jie in the capital for a long time and were very familiar with the capital. Therefore, after entering the city, they quickly visited several mansions with Xu Jie's messages and delivered Xu Jie's personal letters. Only then did they return to Xu Jie in the capital. Mansion.

Although Xu Jie has returned to his hometown after serving as an official, and the original mansion was given by Emperor Jiajing and has been returned to the inner court, Xu Jie has been an official in the capital for many years, and of course he also purchased his own house, which was Xu Kun's residence at that time.

The Xu family who are now staying in the capital all live together there, and it is also the Xu family's stronghold in the capital.

After the office was dismissed that day, several officials received letters from Xu Jie.

No matter what the arrangement in the letter was, they just wrote it down and prepared to take action. (End of chapter)