prosperous age

Chapter 1118 1209 Taking the Blame

Zhu Heng looked down on Pan Jixun and thought he was incapable of resolving the matter.

In fact, even in later times, the silt problem of the Yellow River will still have no solution, unless the rainfall in the middle and later sections of the Yellow River basin decreases and no heavy rains form, thereby preventing floods.

But without water, it would be the same situation as at the end of the Ming Dynasty, when the people had no food or clothing and finally took desperate measures.

"He can't?"

Wei Guangde looked at Zhu Heng with interest and asked.

"He's not capable of that."

Zhu Heng still shook his head. "In fact, the Yellow River has always been the main responsibility of the Ministry of Industry. I have been in the Ministry of Industry for so many years, and I have always been troubled by the Yellow River floods, but there is still nothing I can do.

All I can say is that this is beyond human power.”

Then, Wei Guangde shifted his gaze to Jiang Zhi, who was also an experienced water conservancy expert with many years of experience.

However, his performance was not much better than Zhu Heng's, he just shook his head.

"Do you think you will accept or reject the Prime Minister's proposal?"

Wei Guangde asked calmly.

"It's just a waste of time and money. It may delay the flood for a year or two, but it won't last forever."

Zhu Heng said it directly and expressed his attitude.

After Wei Guangde knew Zhu Heng's attitude, he nodded silently.

"Shan Dai, if you have any problems today, why not come with us to Guanghe Tower to sit and listen to some music. I heard that the new work "Qingshan Ji" by the famous Jiangnan artist Gu Dadian will be performed on stage today."

The matter of the Ministry of Industry was almost finished, and just as Wei Guangde said goodbye and prepared to meet with the cabinet, Jiang Zhi extended an invitation.

"Guanghe Building, good."

Wei Guangde did not refuse and agreed with a smile.

Guanghe Building, later known as Guanghe Theater, is located outside Qianmen, Beijing.

Guanghe Tower was built in the late Ming Dynasty. It was once the earliest and most famous theater in Beijing. It is known as one of the four major theaters in Beijing along with Huale Tower, Guangde Tower and No. 1 Stage.

As early as the mid-Ming Dynasty, this was a well-known teahouse, which later gradually developed into a theater.

As for Gu Datian mentioned by Jiang Zhi, although he was not well-known in later generations, he was a famous poet, dramatist, calligrapher and painter in the Ming Dynasty.

Gu Dadian, courtesy name Daoxing, alias Hengyu, was a native of Wujiang, Suzhou Prefecture, Nanzhili. He was the grandson of Gu Bing, a Jinshi in the second year of the Longqing reign of the Qing dynasty, and currently the magistrate of Chuzhou.

However, it seems that he was only interested in being an official out of a desire to repay his family, and his hobbies were more about opera, calligraphy and painting, and he enjoyed enjoying the mountains and rivers with his friends.

The play "The Story of the Green Shirt" is based on Su Shi's "Pipa Song" and Ma Zhiyuan's zaju "The Tears of the Green Shirt of the Sima of Jiangzhou", and can be regarded as an adaptation of Gu Dadian.

The play script tells that Bai Juyi visited Pei Xingnu, a female entertainer in the imperial music troupe who was good at playing the pipa, and pawned her green shirt for wine. Later, Bai Juyi was demoted to Jiangzhou because he opposed the imperial order and went against the imperial will. He went to visit Xingnu before leaving, but failed to meet her. A tea guest from Fuliang bought Xingnu and took her to Jiangzhou. Xingnu played the pipa when the moon was cold and the wind was clear, and thus Bai was reunited with her.

Because of his official status and the halo of Jinshi, his works have always been highly praised.

Wei Guangde came out of the Ministry of Works and saw a servant from the mansion standing next to the sedan chair, so he went over immediately.

"master."

The man hurriedly saluted Wei Guangde.

"Have you found it?"

Wei Guangde just nodded and asked casually.

"Master, we have checked all the people who have been in and out of Zhang's house recently. We have not found any trace of the Zhejiang official. However, there is one of his classmates who has been to Zhang's house."

The servant whispered in Wei Guangde's ear.

"Okay, got it. Let me check it out."

Wei Guangde just said it lightly, then got into the sedan chair and went back to the cabinet.

When he was released, he arranged for someone to go back and investigate the matter, to find out whether Pan Jixun was looking for someone to arrange his comeback.

Although there is no definite news, it at least seems possible.

After returning to the cabinet, Wei Guangde did not immediately go to Zhang Juzheng to explain the Ministry of Works' attitude, but planned to wait for a day or two.

When the court was over, Wei Guangde went back home to change into casual clothes, said goodbye to his wife, and then took a sedan chair to Guanghe Tower.

He had dinner with Zhu Heng and a few others in the private room in the front, and then went to the theater in the back to listen to a play.

Although Wei Guangde was not very interested in Ming Dynasty opera, there was nothing he could do. When he got here, he had to blend in and live among the crowd.

"Besides, Mr. Liu is a guest, a commoner, how can I accompany him?"

On the stage, the leading actors were performing hard, while Wei Guangde and a few others were drinking tea and chatting.

"As expected of a Jinshi composer, the lyrics and music are also good."

Jiang Zhi loved listening to opera, so he laughed immediately.

"Jinshi, hehe"

Shu Hua next to him laughed.

"Why are you laughing?"

Jiang Zhi looked at Shu Hua and asked cheerfully.

"Recently, a chapter novel called The Story of Jin Ping Mei has been circulating among the people. It is said that the author is a Jinshi."

Shu Hua explained with a smile.

"I heard someone talk about that book. Didn't they say it didn't have an author's name?"

Cai Guozhen asked from the side.

"You've all seen it?"

When Wei Guangde heard this familiar name, he couldn't help but become interested and asked.

"I just flipped through it and can only say, oh, it's hard to give a good review."

Shu Hua replied, "It's just a legend outside. It was written for officials, but I feel it should be a senior. I saw it throughout the whole article."

Zhu Heng frowned and asked. He was the most senior person in the group, so he was very curious about Shu Hua's words. He asked with a smile, "Why do you say that?"

"Hey, when I read the book, I felt that Ximen Qing looked a lot like 'Qing'er'."

Shu Hua lowered his voice and answered softly.

"Qing'er? Hiss."

Zhu Heng had been in the court for many years, so he naturally remembered who it was and couldn't help but gasp.

"Look at that last name again. Simon, Simon."

Shu Hua continued.

Wei Guangde nodded. He understood what Shu Hua meant.

The west gate faces the east building, and Yan Shifan's nickname is "Qing'er". He is also the godson of Grand Tutor Cai Jing, which has a strong allusion.

In fact, "The Legend of Jin Ping Mei" was widely circulated during the Ming Dynasty, but the author's name was not recorded in the book.

As for the later rumor that the author was Lanling Xiaoxiaosheng, it was because the earliest version of the engraved book discovered was accompanied by a preface signed "Xinxinzi", the first sentence of which said "I personally believe that Lanling Xiaoxiaosheng wrote "The Jin Ping Mei"", indicating that the author of the book was "Lanling Xiaoxiaosheng".

"Lanling" is the county's ancestral home, and "Xiaoxiaosheng" is the author.

So the last sentence of the preface is "I therefore say: Xiaoxiaosheng wrote this biography for a reason."

Therefore, later generations identified the author of this book as Lanling Xiaoxiaosheng.

After a while of chatting, Wei Guangde whispered to Shu Hua, "Send it to my house after you finish reading it. I want to see how the book is written."

Wei Guangde had seen the so-called movie in later life, but had not read the book, so he was somewhat interested in it.

"Sure, sure. I'll have someone copy a copy and send it over."

Shu Hua smiled. The Ming Dynasty had no copyright awareness. For a long time in China, although authors had copyright, most of their income was the first money they paid to the bookseller, and there was no more after that.

In the West, royalties are paid based on the number of publications, which never happened in ancient China. This situation lasted until the 1980s.

During this period, most of the authors actually paid out of their own pockets to publish their books.

For example, the Compendium of Materia Medica written by Li Shizhen, who was very famous in later generations. If he had not been appreciated for treating important figures, this book would have been difficult to publish.

In addition to books printed in large quantities by booksellers, handwritten copies by the people are also very popular.

Shu Hua wanted to give Wei Guangde a whole handwritten copy directly, and Wei Guangde could only smile and nod to show his gratitude.

Yes, although "The Legend of Jin Ping Mei" has been circulated, it was not published by booksellers, so there are no engraved books, all of them are handwritten.

If the book was really published by a bookseller, the author would naturally not be able to conceal his identity.

The stereotypes that circulated afterwards can basically be considered as infringing works without the author's authorization.

During the casual chat, the performance on stage continued, "Once the power is in my hand, I will issue orders. All armies, big and small, will obey my orders."

This was the part about the An-Shi Rebellion and the chaos in Chang'an. Everyone naturally knew that period of history and they all listened to the opera with smiles on their faces.

However, when Wei Guangde heard Duan's lines, he couldn't help but be shocked.

"Once you have power, you can issue orders."

He automatically filtered out the later scenes of marching and fighting, and instead silently recited the previous paragraph. Somehow, he thought of what happened today.

After Wei Guangde came here, although he did not set any grand ambitions or seek a life of wealth and honor, he just wanted to solve the problem of food and clothing.

Thinking back to the beginning, because of the fear of traveling through time, Wei Guangde's biggest wish was to go to Jiujiang City's Jiujiang Chaoguan to work as a civil servant and eat the emperor's food.

Of course, living in the city is also his goal.

I have come to this day without realizing it. Perhaps it is true that time travelers are blessed by God.

It should be said that with him as a time traveler, the Wanli Ming Dynasty has changed a lot. It is no longer like the period when Zhang Juzheng was in power, when it only looked inward and tried its best to solve the serious and corrupt problems within the country.

Taking advantage of the foundation of the Ming Dynasty, Wei Guangde has been committed to promoting the Ming Dynasty to look overseas and put it into practice.

Yes, although the Ming Dynasty was in a bad state internally, its might still remained even after its death. The Ming Dynasty had a good foundation. Even though Spain and Portugal started the Age of Discovery, in terms of comprehensive national strength, the Ming Dynasty was still the undisputed overlord of the world.

Of course, there is no such thing as comprehensive national strength in this era.

However, Wei Guangde suddenly discovered that, since some time ago, his behavior and actions seemed to have become selfish. He no longer considered the interests of the country and the nation, but did things for himself and the small circle centered on him.

"Once you have power, you can issue orders. That's a good saying."

Wei Guangde suddenly laughed at himself.

Perhaps, he has been blinded by power and can no longer see anything else.

And those things he thought he was doing for the country and the nation seemed to be created because he wanted to promote the talents around him.

Thinking about what had happened before, and how he and Zhu Heng had done it for their own benefit, he had made up his mind to reject Zhang Juzheng's proposal to let Pan Jixun control the flood.

Yes, just try.

The Ministry of Works led by Zhu Heng and Jiang Zhi had no idea how to control the Yellow River and could only choose a conservative approach, that is, to dredge if it was blocked and repair if it burst.

"Pan Jixun, Pan Jixun."

Soon, Wei Guangde finally figured it out. Since the Ministry of Works was powerless, why not let Pan Jixun, who was unemployed at home, have a try? Maybe after keeping a low profile for so many years, he really had other ideas.

However, thinking of Zhu Heng's attitude towards Pan Jixun, Wei Guangde thought about it and realized that he could not talk about this matter directly, so he had to be more tactful.

So, he approached Zhu Heng and whispered, "Brother Shinan."

"Ah."

Zhu Heng glanced at him and looked back at the stage.

"I have thought about today's matter over and over again, and I think it seems that we should still follow Prime Minister Zhang's wishes and let the person he recommends manage the Yellow River."

Wei Guangde whispered.

"Why?"

Pan Jixun asked in a low voice without looking away.

"The Yellow River incident is already like this, and sooner or later there will be a big mistake. Instead of holding the Ministry of Works accountable, it is better to transfer the primary responsibility from Jiang Zhi to Pan Jixun.

If Pan Jixun can really manage the Yellow River well, that would be the best. It would not be a bad idea to make him the Vice Minister of Works and in charge of river works.

If water control fails, the main responsibility will be on him. Although the Ministry of Works cannot shirk its responsibility, it is much smaller after all.

With Prime Minister Zhang at the front, I can help to turn things around."

Wei Guangde directly told Zhu Heng that he intended to let Pan Jixun take the blame. Zhu Heng then turned his head to look at him, then turned back to continue watching the performance on the stage.

Although he looked like he was watching the show, he was actually calculating the pros and cons of the matter in his heart.

As the Minister of Works, he should naturally try his best to deal with river disasters. However, judging from his many years of experience in the Ministry of Works, the problem of the Yellow River is really beyond human control.

can't be cured.

Thinking of Pan Jixun again, the conflict between him and Pan Jixun back then was actually about whether the river should be dredged or excavated.

When the Xuzhou and Huanghe rivers flooded, he advocated digging a new river to bypass the most dangerous sections of the Yellow River.

Pan Jixun advocated dredging, although it seemed that he was right in the end.

Now the new canal has been in operation for a long time and shipping has remained smooth.

"It's blocked, then unblocked, then unblocked again. How long will this go on?"

Zhu Heng sighed in his heart.

The Yellow River, although it is the birthplace of Chinese civilization, is also the most troublesome problem for all dynasties.

"I'm afraid if he comes back, Shunqing won't be able to control him."

Shunqing naturally refers to Jiang Zhi, which is his courtesy name.

"If I'm here, I'll put him in the position of river governor. At worst, I'll let him hold the title of minister. If that doesn't work, I'll just send him to Nanjing."

Wei Guangde said casually.

Anyway, the Ming Dynasty had already prepared a team, including ministers of ministries, in Beijing and Nanjing. The only difference was that their jurisdiction was much smaller, but their rank and treatment were the same.

Even if Pan Jixun has made great contributions, so what? I have given you an official position that matches yours, so why would you still not accept it?

"I have no opinion."

Finally, Zhu Heng nodded and agreed to let Pan Jixun return to take charge of river affairs.

The next day, Wei Guangde went to the cabinet to handle official business for half a day. Before the afternoon break, he went to the prime minister's duty room and directly told Zhang Juzheng the results of his discussion with Zhu Heng.

"In that case, what title should be given to him?"

Seeing that Wei Guangde and the Ministry of Works had no objection, Zhang Juzheng immediately said, "Before, he seemed to be the Right Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate and the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works in charge of the river crossing project."

Zhang Juzheng was talking about an incident that happened in the fifth year of the Longqing reign. At that time, Pan Jixun was in charge of a river project, but an accident occurred shortly after the completion of the project. As a result, he was impeached and dismissed from office.

"Let's keep it this way."

What Wei Guangde meant was to be reinstated.

"What do you think of adding an admiral of military affairs?"

Zhang Juzheng suggested.

Appointing Pan Jixun as the commander-in-chief of military affairs was certainly not to let him switch to military affairs, but to facilitate the mobilization of surrounding garrisons to guard river works, and to allow the garrisons to contribute and participate in river works construction at critical times.

Wei Guangde only thought about it for a moment before nodding his head and agreeing, "Then I will appoint you as the Right Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate and Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works as the Director of the Hecao and the Superintendent of Military Affairs."

"Great kindness."

Zhang Juzheng clapped his hands and laughed.