prosperous age

Chapter 424 Chapter 423
With God's favor, the news that he warned Emperor Jiajing of the banditry in Fujian gradually spread among the people.

For this reason, Emperor Jiajing summoned Yang Bo, Shangshu of the Ministry of War alone, and asked about the strategy of suppressing bandits in Fujian.

Because the task of exterminating Fujian anti-thieves had been entrusted to Hu Zongxian, the Governor of the Japanese Suppression, Yang Bo did not propose a specific plan in front of Emperor Jiajing, but waited for the report from Zhejiang Hu Zongxian.

For Zhang Lian, Emperor Jiajing actually didn't care much. If the alchemists hadn't kept claiming that the celestial phenomenon might be related to the Fujian rebellion, Emperor Jiajing would have directly thrown it to the courtiers to deal with.

Hearing Yang Bo's answer now, thinking about it, it didn't take long for Hu Zongxian to suppress the thieves just after he made the decree. If he retracted the decree immediately, it would seem like it would be a bit of a joke to deal with the government.

Following King Jing's departure from the capital, the errands of the Ministry of Rites were temporarily relaxed.

However, when Wu Shan sent a memorial to the cabinet again, the ministers of the Manchu Dynasty were all shocked.

Naturally, what Wu Shan played was still about the solar eclipse, and he still insisted on maintaining the ancestral system and rescuing the solar eclipse. Your Majesty should also follow the ancestral system.

The last time Wu Shan played the performance, the Emperor Jiajing was very dissatisfied. Although after Li Donghua impeached Wu Shan, Wu Shan did not have time to avoid suspicion and go home. Just a warning.

Doesn't Wu Shan know how powerful it is?
of course not.

This time, Wu Shan was prompted to bring up the solar eclipse again, and he also felt that he really couldn't stand it anymore, and even felt that the court was full of sycophants and flatterers.

A few days ago, his attention was all shifted to King Jing's inauguration ceremony, and he didn't notice the news from the inner court.

Emperor Jiajing wrote a thank-you form for the reason of being favored by heaven, and enshrined it in the Daguangdian Hall in Xiyuan.

Yan Shifan thought that before, Emperor Jiajing had told the cabinet to order congratulations from all officials, and immediately organized Yan officials to present congratulatory forms, and Emperor Jiajing accepted these congratulatory forms frankly.

After seeing Emperor Jiajing's intentions, the other ministers of the Manchu Dynasty could take care of other things, so they all came forward to congratulate the Emperor for God's favor.

The court congratulations on the dubious "don't eat when you eat", this hypocritical ceremony that was severely reprimanded by Chengzu and rejected by Yingzong, was held in a grandiose place here in Sejong, and Wu Shan, who was the minister of the Ministry of Rites, could bear it.

During Chengzu Yingzong's period, some officials once proposed to celebrate "when the food is not eaten" because of the occurrence of a solar and lunar eclipse with a low degree of concealment or a solar and lunar eclipse that could not be observed due to weather reasons, but they were all rejected by the emperor at that time. On the contrary, they all acted according to the rescue etiquette, wore plain clothes, did not go to the main hall, and practiced in the side hall.

When he became Minister of the Ministry of Rites, he celebrated a solar eclipse because of the so-called "eating but not eating". Wu Shan couldn't swallow this breath no matter what.

This solar eclipse was not predicted in time by the Qin Tianjian before, so the Ministry of Rites did not complete the arrangement of the rescue ceremony. Only the officials of the Ministry of Rites hurriedly saluted and bowed to the sun under the leadership of Wu Shan, which already made him feel ashamed as the minister of the Ministry of Rites.

According to the requirements of the Ming Huidian, the Ming Dynasty's rescue rituals for solar and lunar eclipses were very detailed.

"In the early stage, the decorations were placed at the Ritual Gate and the main hall of the Ritual Department. The incense table was set up on the terrace facing the sun. The golden drums were placed on both sides of the Yimen Gate, the musicians were placed under the terrace, and the official worship was set up and down the terrace, all facing Hitachi. , Qin Tianjian officials report the first meal of the day, all officials wear court clothes, ceremonies are sung in class, praises are sung and bowed. Music composition, four worships, prosperity, flat body. Music stops, kneeling. The deacon holds the drum and greets the head of the class, the head of the class Drums beating three times, and all the drums beating together. Waiting for the Qintian supervisor to retaliate, singing and bowing in praise. Music composition, four prostrations, flattening the body. Music stop, the ceremony is over.

The lunar eclipse instrument is the same as before, but the Tsing Yi corner belt of all officials was rescued in the Chinese Army Dudu's Mansion. "

Although most civil servants understood the meaning of Wu Shan's memorandum, they were all sweating for Wu Shan's behavior. No one knew whether Emperor Jiajing would be furious because of this, especially the Rites who had been warned before. Li Donghua was involved.

Thinking of the previous warning, Li Donghua didn't know whether he should impeach Wu Shan again.

It was supposed to be something that could make the emperor happy, but if Wu Shan insisted on making trouble, no one would be satisfied with it.

But when Li Donghua thought about it, he couldn't make up his mind, so he simply got up and left the house to ask the cabinet.

He felt like he was sitting on pins and needles staying in the duty room, so he might as well go out and find out the direction of the downwind.

Exit the Youshun Gate, and cross Fengtianmen Square to the Zuoshun Gate, where the cabinet is located.

When he walked outside Zuoshun's door, he happened to see a big fat man wearing a scarlet robe and a peacock patch on his chest coming out of it.

Of course Li Donghua recognized who came, he hastily saluted respectfully, "I've seen Minister Yan."

"Hey, it's you."

The person who came was naturally Yan Shifan, looking at the person in front of him who bowed his hands and saluted, he was recognized at a glance as Li Donghua.

He looked Li Donghua up and down, and said with a smile, "Are you looking for my father or Mr. Xu Ge, Mr. Xu Ge is not here today, you can tell me if you have anything?"

Now about the affairs of the cabinet, although he, Yan Shifan, did not join the cabinet, he still performed the job of a cabinet minister, but the payment could only be made in the name of Yan Song, which was also permitted by Emperor Jiajing.

In this way, Yan Song's political life was extended.

Yan Song, who is almost [-] years old, has long been exhausted. Handling government affairs alone often lacks thoughtfulness. It is all dependent on Yan Shifan's planning. This is also known to the whole court, so Li Donghua listened to Yan Shifan's inquiry Not surprising either.

After hesitating for a moment, Li Donghua still said to Yan Shifan: "Master Yan, I want to ask Elder Ge for advice on how I should deal with Wu Shangshu's memorial."

"Oh, this thing."

Yan Shifan understood after hearing this, but thinking that it was Wu Shan's matter, he couldn't help but feel hatred in his heart.

Wu Shan, whose name is Jing, and whose name is Yunquan, is from Gao'an, Jiangxi Province, and Yan Song is from Yuanzhou Prefecture, Jiangxi Province.

Wu Shan didn't want to have too much contact with the Yan family, and Yan Shifan could understand it. Literati all have this problem, they love their feathers very much. Wu Shan didn't want to be said to be flattering the old man of the cabinet, he could still understand.

However, being able to understand does not mean accepting it. Yan Shifan himself dismissed these red tapes.

What made Wu Shan really offend Yan Shifan was that a few years ago, Wu Shan succeeded Wang Yongbin as Minister of Rites, but although Wu Shan was from his hometown, he didn't agree with anything, and often disagreed with Yan Song.

At this time, Yan Shifan accidentally learned that Wu Shan had a middle-aged daughter who was as beautiful as a flower. He didn't think there was an age gap between himself and Wu Shan's daughter, so he wanted to marry her.

The first assistant's family was married to the current court's calligrapher, so Yan Shifan naturally would not be sloppy. He found Lu Ben, the second assistant at that time, and entrusted Lu Ben, a senior scholar, to be a matchmaker.

In the name of Yan Shifan, Lu Ben invited Wu Shan to drink and play chess. Lu Ben covered the chessboard with his hands and said to Wu Shan, "What do you know about Yan Zhanggong's wine?"

Wu Shan said, "I don't know."

So Lu Ben told Wu Shan about the marriage, Wu Shan politely declined, and Yan Shifan was very displeased when he found out.

In retaliation, Yan Shifan also used his father Yan Song's identity to mess up Wu Shan's entry into the cabinet, making Wu Shan stay as Minister of the Ministry of Rites for nearly five years.

Although becoming a minister of the Ministry of Rites does not necessarily mean that he will join the cabinet, but when Emperor Jiajing appointed Wu Shan to replace Wang Yongbin, he really intended to let Wu Shan join the cabinet, and even had several exchanges with Yan Song because of this.

At this moment, I heard Li Donghua mention Wu Shan's memorial. A few days ago, he was annoyed by King Jing's leaving the capital to become a feudal clan, so he missed the opportunity.

Not only did he use the solar eclipse to keep King Jing, but he also took the opportunity to overthrow Wu Shan. He did not intend to let go of this opportunity.

Emperor Jiajing seems to have become more and more stubborn because of his age, and it is becoming more and more difficult to accept the opinions of the ministers, and he appears to be more self-willed.

Wu Shan angered the emperor many times in just over ten days, and one can know the emperor's state of mind at this time just thinking about it.

Although Yan Shifan knew that because of the solar eclipse, it was impossible for Emperor Jiajing to kill Wu Shan.

The emperor really wanted to do this, and recorded it in the "Records of the Emperor", fearing that he would be ridiculed by later generations. Emperor Jiajing had to worry about this.

Although it is said that Wu Shan cannot be killed, it is possible for Yan Shifan to dismiss him from office.

Moreover, according to Yan Shifan's knowledge, before Wu Shan's first memorial was submitted, it is said that Gao Gong approached Wu Shan several times, but failed to prevent him from submitting the memorial.

But this time, not only Gao Gong didn't persuade, even Xu Jie didn't seem to want to get involved in this matter, and directly transferred the memorial to Yan Song's room for handling.

The emperor didn't like it, and the chief and second ministers of the cabinet didn't want to protect him. Yan Shifan felt that the opportunity to bring Wu Shan down had come.

When the time comes, there will be a position of minister, and the officials of the Yan family can still fight for it.

The Ministry of Rites seems to have no luxuries, but Yan Shifan has been coveting for a long time. It is really an imperial examination system under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Rites, and there are too many benefits to take advantage of. If things are done well, not only will they reap money, but they can also win over a large number of local gentry families.

After a little thought, Yan Shifan said to Li Donghua: "What do you guys do in Li Ke, have you forgotten your Majesty's instructions last time, Master Li?"

Speaking of this, Yan Shifan smiled lightly and said: "If I remember correctly, the last time it was because the Rituals were not in the memorial, which made His Majesty unhappy.

No matter what you say, you always show that your etiquette is not just dawdling in the court, let's not say what is right or wrong, and have a correct attitude, so that your majesty will not regard you as useless people.

If you are right, you will win His Majesty's favor, but if you are wrong, you will just be rejected. Someday the cabinet will not receive a few rejected memorials. "

Yan Shifan seemed relaxed and said that he believed that based on what he said just now, Li Donghua should understand that Emperor Jiajing would not offend him if he expressed his attitude in the memorial, and if he did not express his attitude in the memorial, he might be punished. implicated.

Of course, Li Donghua also wanted to understand that this memorial had to be published, otherwise he was afraid that he would hurt Chi Yu again like the previous one.

Wu Shan's memorial will definitely make Emperor Jiajing furious. Of course, his own memorial cannot go along with Wu Shan, and he can only say that he is wrong. As for whether Emperor Jiajing will severely punish Wu Shan this time, it has little to do with him.

He thought that if he had played to impeach Wu Shan earlier last time, he would not have been fined.

For those yamen with plenty of oil and water, officials naturally don't live on their salaries, but it's different for a professional like him.

Thinking of being implicated and losing two months' salary, Li Donghua made up his mind that the last impeachment was not enough, and he needed to be more ruthless, otherwise it would be difficult to dispel his grievances.

Prince Yu's Mansion, Nuan Pavilion in the back garden.

There are quite a lot of people in the house today, not only King Yu is here, even Gao Gong who has not been in the mansion for a long time also found a reason to come in.

As for the officials of the palace, Yin Shizhen, Wei Guangde and Zhang Juzheng were naturally also in the room, but the atmosphere in the room was a bit cold at this time.

Gao Gong bowed his head in deep thought at this moment, Wei Guangde and Zhang Juzheng were talking quietly at the last table, only Yu Wang and Yin Shizhen were looking around, Yu Wang was obviously out of mind, and Yin Shizhen didn't know how to break the cold atmosphere.

But after sitting for a while, Yu Wang showed some impatience, and said: "Mr. Gao, I think, if you think you can argue, then you should fight. There is no need to take what Guangde and the others say seriously."

Hearing King Yu's words, Wei Guangde and Zhang Juzheng, who were whispering, stopped talking and looked at King Yu. After hearing what King Yu said clearly, the two just looked at each other with wry smiles.

Today, Gao Gong entered Prince Yu's mansion, not because he missed King Yu, so he came back to take a look, but because he wanted to get the support of King Yu so that he could compete for the position of Minister of Rites.

Gao Gong still didn't understand that Wu Shan was obviously not stupid, but he wanted to go against the emperor's will for a trivial matter and make the emperor unhappy.

In Gao Gong's opinion, Wu Shan's official position is definitely not guaranteed.

Before entering the palace, Gao Gong had an exchange with Xu Jie, the second assistant, and they agreed on the issue of Wu Shan's fate, but Xu Jie gave a similar opinion to Wei Guangde's about Gao Gong's replacement.

Gao Gong's entry into the court was still short, and the emperor might not choose him to succeed Wu Shan. Moreover, if Gao Gong succeeded Wu Shan, then he had to express his position on the issue of Wu Shan's resignation, whether he supported it or opposed it.

Although Emperor Jiajing had a clear attitude, as Wu Shan said, "Who am I to deceive? Deceive the sky!"

If Gao Gong expressed his support for the emperor, he would definitely leave a flattering impression in Shilin, and if he supported Wu Shan, it would not be for nothing that the emperor would hate him.

Xu Jie clearly did not approve of Gao Gong's idea, so after he separated from Xu Jie, Gao Gong went directly to Prince Yu's Mansion, intending to act with the power of Prince Yu's Mansion.

Unexpectedly, after King Yu summoned his subordinates to come here to discuss, Wei Guangde said something similar to Xu Jie, thinking that his primary goal was to win the chance to join the cabinet, and what he should do now was to enrich his resume.

The meaning in the words is very clear, it is better to think about how to compete for the official position of the Ministry of Officials first.

Gao Gong has been in the Ministry of Rites for half a year, if he can move into the Ministry of Officials, the road to the cabinet will be completely opened.

Now the Minister of the Ministry of Officials is still Wu Peng. Gao Gong had a good relationship with the Yan Mansion before, so naturally he has a good relationship with Wu Peng. It is better to move around more. Now that there is a vacancy for the position of Zuo Shilang in the Ministry of Officials, it is better to give it a try.

"Guangde is right."

Only then did Gao Gong raise his head, looked at King Yu and said, "Maybe I'm still in a hurry."

When he said this, Gao Gong still hesitated for a moment on his face, and then said firmly: "I will visit Wu Shangshu tonight."

Seeing King Yu's surprised gaze, Gao Gong smiled and said, "It's Wu Peng and Wu Shangshu."

(End of this chapter)