I'm really not doing business

Chapter 922: Seeking Glory and Obtaining Glory, One After Another

Zhu Yijun returned to the loyal Shuntian Prefecture and rested for three days. Instead of being tired from a long journey, Zhu Yijun rode in the imperial jade carriage, and the imperial guards led the way whenever he went out. He did not feel tired at all, but was dealing with the backlog of memorials.

When the Ming emperor was on a southern tour, Zhu Zaiyu didn't take much charge of affairs, and the child Zhu Changzhi couldn't take charge of things either. The four ministers of the cabinet were unable to decide on some things.

The first thing is about the list of people held accountable for starving to death during the drought in Shaanxi. Disaster relief grain must be used for disaster relief, and there must be grain.

The drought in Shaanxi is a man-made disaster.

Zhu Yijun took the memorial and felt amazed. Could it be that the nine clans of the prefect of Pingliang Prefecture were killed in bulk? How could a person be so courageous? Were they really not afraid that the victims would break into the prefectures and counties and eat these corrupt officials alive?
The drought in Shaanxi killed more than a thousand people, mainly in Pingliang Prefecture, which attracted the attention of all the imperial censors.

There was no grain in the treasury, and none of the relief grain issued by Xi'an Prefecture was used for disaster relief.

The investigation by the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Revenue discovered something fishy and eventually confirmed that it was a corruption case. The Censorate, the Ministry of Justice, and the Dali Temple sentenced thirty-two people to immediate execution.

"Is there no grain in the treasury of Pingliang Prefecture because the food was used for other purposes after planting trees and pasture in Suiyuan? Or is there no grain stored and no disaster relief because of the construction of the Longkai Road?" Zhu Yijun felt that the Pingliang Prefecture's prefectural government had to choose between fulfilling the emperor's order and protecting people's livelihood, and in order to get promoted, it chose to fulfill the emperor's order.

If this is the case, it can be considered the evil of the imperial court, and we cannot entirely blame the Pingliang Prefecture's prefectural government for being so audacious.

Feng Bao searched for a while and presented another memorial to the emperor. He bowed his head and said, "The Ministry of Personnel, the Ministry of Revenue, and the Censorate have investigated very clearly. This matter alarmed His Royal Highness Prince De, who sent the Imperial Guards to Pingliang Prefecture to investigate for more than three months."

"The money and grain from the government treasury were not used to plant trees or pasture, nor were they used to build roads and distribute them."

"All the relief grain was sold at high prices to fill the hole."

Zhu Yijun took the memorial and read it for a long time before picking up the red brush and saying, "Killing the man is not enough. Exiling his family to Jinshan City is not enough. Publishing it in the court newspaper is not enough. After the case is announced, a monument will be erected in the Pingliang government office to pass this matter down from generation to generation."

The case is quite complicated. In the 13th year of Wanli, Pingliang Prefecture was still in Shaanxi Province. It was a prefectural yamen with good political stability and harmonious people. In this year, a broker came to the prefectural yamen. After being introduced by someone, the broker got to know the prefect and got control of the silver in the treasury.

The prefect of Pingliang Prefecture confessed that it was because he was obsessed with money that he believed the lies of the broker.

The broker took the silver to Xi'an Prefecture and exchanged it for an acceptance bill. When he arrived in the capital, he entered Yanxing Tower and invested in the gold and silver market.

The prefect was not a fool. He sent three people to keep an eye on the broker day and night. At first, the broker made a lot of money. Then, the gold ship of the Jinchi Governor's Mansion arrived at the port. The gold price plummeted and he lost everything. The broker committed suicide in despair.

The Pingliang Prefecture's prefectural government lost 110,000 silver coins, so it began to sell off the stored grain in the treasury to fill the shortfall. Thinking that the imperial court would inspect it, it set fire to the warehouses to settle the accounts. However, before the imperial court could inspect the treasury, a severe drought came first.

Everyone in the Pingliang prefectural government was going crazy over the deficit of only 110,000 silver coins. After Xi'an distributed disaster relief grain, they decided to take advantage of the high grain prices and sell it at a high price. Then, they took advantage of the disaster to annex 3,000 hectares of land, in order to make up for the deficit.

Because Pingliang Prefecture had the highest number of deaths from drought and famine, the imperial court had to get to the bottom of the matter no matter what, and eventually get to the bottom of all this.

One wrong step leads to another, and eventually you slide into the abyss.

The most bizarre thing about this case is that the broker was able to convince the prefectural government to take all the silver to gamble in the gold and silver market.

It stands to reason that what bureaucrats care most about is stability, and they will be afraid of any unstable factors.

Of course, the Tiqi did not believe that it was just greed for money, so they repeatedly visited and investigated the dead broker and comprador. They conducted a comprehensive investigation and finally determined that there was no one else behind the broker and comprador.

The deceased broker was a Pingliang Prefecture merchant who made a little money in the Yanxinglou Gold and Silver Market. After returning to Pingliang Prefecture, he showed off his wealth everywhere. People in Pingliang Prefecture spread the rumor that this merchant was the reincarnation of the God of Wealth. As the rumor got spread, it became more and more outrageous.

The prefect of Pingliang Prefecture met this businessman several times and finally thought that this man really had some ability, so he recruited him as his legal advisor to be in charge of collusion.

The truth of the matter is so outrageous that it increases its credibility.

Shaanxi Governor Shi Xingyan was impeached by the censors, mainly because Shi Xingyan refused to follow the court's plan of developing both land and sea, and firmly opposed investing too much in reopening the Western Regions.

The most crucial thing is: the sneak attack on Ningyuan Hou Li Chengliang was also related to Shi Xingyan.

"It's strange. Li Chengliang, who was framed by Shi Xingyan, said nothing, but the censors kept chattering." Zhu Yijun was flipping through the memorials. Shi Xingyan couldn't stand it anymore and submitted a memorial of retirement.

Shi Xingyan was an actuary. He felt that it would be better to let Li Chengliang take his 3,000 foreign soldiers and do as much trouble as he wanted. The larger the territory, the better. The Ming Dynasty's reopening of the Western Regions should take 20 to 50 years, not just one day. The main thing was to maintain an offensive and pioneering posture.

Shaanxi, Gansu and Suiyuan were too poor to support large-scale development.

The first reason the censors impeached Shi Xingyan was that he was disloyal to the emperor and did not understand the country's will. This was a big hat, but Shi Xingyan had no choice but to wear it. After all, his ideas were really different from the emperor's.

Li Chengliang summoned the tribal chieftains of the Western Regions and used the same fighting methods he used in Liaodong, recruiting one group and beating another. As a result, the conditions promised by Li Chengliang were not fulfilled. These chieftains of the Western Regions felt that Li Chengliang was going back on his word, so they launched a surprise attack on him.

The foreign soldiers under Li Chengliang were all vicious men. The attackers were no more than 1,200 in number, and with 3,000 foreign soldiers, they beat the enemy into tears.

The strange thing is that Li Chengliang only said that if these bandits dared to attack him, he would definitely retaliate, but he did not say in his memorial that Shi Xingyan had betrayed him and refused to fulfill the promise he had made, which led to the attack.

"The memorials from Marquis Ningyuan and the Governor-General of Shaanxi are all here." Feng Bao took out two secret boxes, which contained the secret memorials from Li Chengliang and Shi Xingyan.

After Zhu Yijun confirmed that the wax seal was in place, he opened the secret box, read the two secret memorials, and then burned them. He then stamped the seal of "no" on all the memorials impeaching Shi Xingyan and rejected them.

The secret memorial was written by two people, explaining the cause and effect clearly. The contents of the secret memorial were basically consistent with the impeachment of the censors.

It's really not Shi Xingyan's fault. It's really because Li Chengliang thought he was in Liaodong and had a million hectares of reclaimed land behind him. The promises he made were too big, and Shi Xingyan really couldn't fulfill them.

What Shi Xingyan said was right, and what he did was right. Zhu Yijun had never been to the northwest, nor to Shaanxi and Gansu. Those places were indeed poor, too poor to support large-scale wars.

Zhu Yijun was busy until dusk before he finally dealt with the memorials that had been piling up for half a month.

"Your Highness, the Queen has been waiting in the West Flower Hall with His Royal Highness the Crown Prince for two quarters of an hour." Feng Bao bowed his head and said this when he saw that His Majesty had finished his official duties.

Zhu Yijun went to the West Flower Hall, sat on the Grand Master's chair, and said with a smile: "My lady, I intend to enthrone Zhier as the Crown Prince."

Zhu Yijun planned to make his eldest son the crown prince, which was inevitable after Zhu Changzhi became regent.

"It's better to wait a few more years." Wang Yaozhuo glanced at Zhu Changzhi and whispered, "Zhi'er is still too young. I'm afraid he can't handle the storms if he becomes the crown prince now."

Anyway, Zhu Changzhi was the eldest son, so there was basically no suspense about the position of crown prince, and the court officials could not find any reason to complain. Conferring the title of crown prince too early was not a good thing.

Now that there is a crown prince, can some rebellious emperors of the Ming Dynasty just die?
All the more domineering monarchs had a somewhat delicate relationship with the crown prince, such as Emperor Wu of Han and Crown Prince Liu Ju, and Emperor Taizong of Tang and Crown Prince Li Chengqian.

Being a crown prince in the Ming Dynasty was also a dangerous thing. At the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, there was Zhu Biao. After Zhu Biao died, Zhu Yuanzhang went crazy.
In the 28th year of the Jiajing reign, Prince Zhuangjing had just performed his coming-of-age ceremony on March 15th, and was crowned on the 16th. He suddenly died of a sudden illness on the 17th.

On the one hand, Wang Yaozhuo didn't want to let his child, who was just nine years old, bear all these ups and downs. On the other hand, he also wanted to see whether Zhu Changzhi could shoulder the responsibility of the country.

Once the crown prince is enthroned, it will mean a complex and cruel political struggle that will pounce on Zhu Changzhi uncontrollably.

Zhu Yijun weighed the pros and cons carefully and said, "Although the court officials did not ask for permission, it is not legitimate. If I do not appoint a crown prince, it will not be fair to Zhier. However, my wife's concerns are reasonable, so we can wait a little longer."

After this stint as regent, Zhu Changzhi had become the de facto crown prince. As long as he did not commit any heinous mistakes, no one would depose him, even if he turned out to be very mediocre when he grew up.

The court officials did not submit a memorial regarding the Crown Prince issue for this reason. Although the Emperor was somewhat unorthodox, he had no intention of deposing the eldest son and enthroning the youngest.

Not appointing him as a crown prince would be the most unfair to Zhu Changzhi.

"Father, I think it would be better to die a few years later." Zhu Changzhi expressed his own opinion. He was indeed still young, but that did not mean he could not understand what people said. He also had his own ideas and thoughts.

Zhu Yijun was a little surprised and asked, "Why?"

Zhu Changzhi frowned, thought for a moment, and then said solemnly: "Since the emperor's uncle got married, he has never come to the palace from Prince Lu's Mansion to see the child. When the child was still young, he always brought all kinds of acrobatics when he came."

Prince Lu Zhu Yiliu loved children very much and often played with Zhu Changzhi, but since he became a "minister's younger brother", his family members became ministers.

As a child, Zhu Changzhi could not understand the complexity of politics, but he could feel the closeness and distance between people. A relative was no longer just a relative, and Zhu Changzhi could clearly feel this change.

He also felt that if he became the crown prince, his father would be the emperor and his mother would be the queen.

Zhu Changzhi had wondered more than once why his uncle had become so unfamiliar. After thinking about it more, he understood the saying that the imperial family was the most ruthless.

If he became the crown prince, would he have to abide by the same red tape as his uncle?

The answer is obviously yes.

For Zhu Changzhi, his father was not his father, and his mother was not his mother, but his father the emperor and his mother the queen mother. This incident was as terrible as the sky falling.

Zhu Yijun was also a little emotional when he heard this. When Baoqisi was first established, he was working in the fields, and Zhu Yiliu was always running around with snot hanging around, peeing and playing in the mud behind him.

But now, Zhu Yiliu has completely abided by the duties of a minister, and even set his sights on Jinshan City as his fiefdom.

"Then let's postpone it for a few years." Zhu Yijun finally made the decision. After all, Zhu Changzhi, the eldest son, was the de facto crown prince.

"The calico cat that Zhier raised died?" After Zhu Yijun finished his business, he asked about the calico cat that Zhu Changzhi raised.

There were many cats in the Ming Dynasty Palace. The Neifu Yamen had a special cat room with four attendants who were responsible for raising the cats. The cats in the palace were also divided into different grades. Those with beautiful patterns and gentle temperaments would be presented to the emperor and the ladies in the palace.

Zhu Yijun was frugal, and he reduced the number of cats in the cat room from over a hundred to twelve.

The calico cat that Zhu Changzhi raised was not a gift from the cat room. Instead, Zhu Changzhi saw a kitten hiding from the rain in a hole in the corner of the wall in April last year. The kitten was about the size of a palm and just one month old. Its color was not very good, and there was a patch of black hair under its mouth, which looked a little weird.

Zhu Changzhi raised it and named it Mozhu. Mozhu was just one month old at that time. It had a very gentle temper and loved cleanliness. It never barked or screamed. Zhu Changzhi just kept it and never got too close to it. After all, if a cat scratched or bit it, it could easily get crazy. The little eunuch in the cat room always held it for Zhu Changzhi to see.

Zhu Yijun went on a southern tour, and Mo Zhu, who had just reached adulthood, fell ill and died in the cat room.

"Uncle Luo has seen it. It was indeed killed by illness. No one meant to harm it. It rained heavily in June and it caught a cold. It lay in bed for three days but eventually died." Zhu Changzhi was a little sad. This was the first time he had raised a living thing since he was a child, but it only stayed with him for a year.

Zhu Changzhi continued, "Father, the eunuch who keeps a cat in the cat room was frightened and knelt on the ground and kowtowed desperately. I thought of the idiom that the teachers taught me, 'leading beasts to eat people'. People are people, and beasts are beasts. You can't punish the eunuch just because Mozhu is my cat."

"Who taught you to say this?" Zhu Yijun frowned. As soon as the words "leading beasts to eat people" came out, Zhu Yijun immediately noticed something unusual.

If a child speaks like an adult, it must be because the adult is teaching him.

Zhu Changzhi immediately replied, "My uncle, Prince De, taught me this. When Prince De knew that my cat had died, he came to the palace and saw that I had not punished Xiao Huangmen. He told me this idiom and told me that if I punished Xiao Huangmen, it would be like leading beasts to eat people, even if Xiao Huangmen was a eunuch or a household slave."

"It's my uncle who taught me, so it's okay." Zhu Yijun felt relieved when he heard that the person who taught me was Zhu Zaiyu. Although Zhu Zaiyu was obsessed with the infinite principles of all things, he always treated people as human beings.

Zhu Zaiyu ignored state affairs, but he would never let Zhu Changzhi grow wildly. If Zhu Changzhi grew up in a wrong direction, it would be a catastrophe that would cause the whole world to collapse.

Zhu Changzhi rubbed his head and whispered, "Father, can you tell Grandpa Dewang about this? I really don't know anything about music theory. It's not that I want to be lazy, I just can't learn it."

Wang Yaozhuo said helplessly: "Zhi'er really has no talent in music theory."

Wang Yaozhuo had an extremely high talent for music, but he did not pass it on to Zhu Changzhi at all. Zhu Changzhi really could not learn music theory well. Zhu Zaiyu tried his best, but in Zhu Zaiyu's opinion, in terms of music, Zhu Changzhi was exactly the same as the emperor, a rotten wood that could not be carved.

"Then don't learn it. We didn't learn it at the beginning." Zhu Yijun smiled when he heard it. This is also the biggest regret of Zhu Zaiyu, a great scientist and musician.

The next morning, the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty appeared in the Wuying Tower of Beidaying. After reviewing the troops in Beidaying, the Emperor summoned the pacification envoy of the Beijing Camp Pacification Office and inquired about the case of the twelve people who were deceived into marriage. He was relieved only after making sure that the case was properly handled.

Zhu Yijun took out a memorial from the Ministry of Justice and handed it to Qi Jiguang, saying: "The Great Ming Code adds military laws and military marriage regulations, which stipulate:"

"If any tyrant dares to seize the wives, concubines or female relatives of any frontier soldier, garrison soldier or expeditionary soldier, or abduct them by any traitor, the principal offender shall be beheaded, the accomplice shall be exiled to the border areas of Southeast Asia, and anyone who knows about it and conceals it shall be punished equally, and their property shall be confiscated by the government."

"If a woman commits adultery, she will be shackled and banished to the south seas and will not be allowed to return to the Ming Dynasty. If a garrison commander or a local village chief knows about it but does not report it, he will be punished as well."

"If the person is the widow of a loyal hero, the crime will be three times more severe, and those involved in the military will be handed over to the Military Pacification Office for handling. Those who knowingly commit the crime will be charged with treason."

"Qi Shuai, please post the notice today."

First, cases involving soldiers must be judged in the military court, that is, the Zhenfusi. The local court ruled that knowingly committing a crime is treason;
Taking advantage of the army's campaigns or border defenses to seize the soldiers' wives, concubines and other relatives will be punishable by death. Anyone involved in this will be exiled to Southeast Asia, and anyone who knows about it but fails to report it will be treated as a crime of the same nature.

If the woman voluntarily commits adultery, she will be exiled to Southeast Asia, and the local authorities must not conceal the matter, as she will be guilty of the same crime.

If the person is the widow of a loyal hero who died on the battlefield, then all the criminals will be charged with three levels of punishment.

"I bow down to thank the emperor for his grace." After Qi Jiguang, Li Rusong, Ma Lin and others circulated it, they bowed deeply to express their gratitude.

Ever since the twelve marriage fraud cases appeared, the Beijing camp actually did not want to have such a good thing as a clear law. It has been seventeen years since the Wanli Reform, but the trend of reviving the civil and military powers in the court is still there.

The generals of the Beijing camp were more concerned with self-protection, so they asked the captain to keep a close watch to prevent similar incidents from happening.

Zhu Yijun had previously issued an order to execute criminals involved in marriage fraud. Under his instruction, the Ministry of Justice and the Dali Temple formulated legal provisions and added them to the Ming Dynasty Code.

When the emperor left, the Military Law and Military Marriage Regulations had already been posted. The soldiers were all excited and were discussing the promulgation of the new law. In fact, for the soldiers, death is not scary. The worry for the future is what every soldier must worry about.

Your Majesty has resolved the soldiers' worries time and time again.

The Emperor of the Ming Dynasty returned to Shuntian Prefecture again. This was great news for all officials, because all the discomfort disappeared and the efficiency of the past decade returned.

During the emperor's southern tour in the past few months, government affairs have been unacceptably slow.

As soon as the diligent Emperor of the Ming Dynasty returned to the capital, he approved all the accumulated memorials, and his politics flowed like flowing water, just like a blocked ditch being dredged.

After the rest period, Zhu Yijun convened the first Wenhua Palace meeting after returning to Beijing. He looked at the ministers and said, "I am very pleased to see the transformation of the Censorate. The censors are finally no longer the swordsmen of the ministers' factional struggles, but are gradually recovering their original functions."

"In the past, the censors either pretended to be peaceful to please the ruler, or chose sweet words to avoid disaster, or attacked with sharp weapons, so that the nine palaces were filled with music and singing, but no one could hear the cries in the streets; the purple palace crowns were hard to see the people of Guizhou."

"Lu Taixian did a great job."

Zhu Yijun still clearly remembered that when Tan Lun coughed at the Sun Altar, he was impeached and dismissed by the Censor of the Censorate. The Censor of the Censorate, who was originally responsible for correcting mistakes, became a tool of factional struggle and lost the ability to correct mistakes.

Now the censors finally remembered what they were doing and started to get down to business.

For those in a higher position, the most important thing is to find ways to establish a complete and effective feedback mechanism and maintain the effectiveness of the mechanism over a long period of time, rather than just listening to what they want to hear.

If one only wants to hear what one wants to hear, then this mechanism is a failure. If it is not improved, it will fall into the dilemma of "the music in the palaces cannot be heard while weeping in the alleys; the officials in the palace cannot see the people in Guizhou."

"I am deeply troubled. I am just repeating what others have said. It is not my fault." Lu Guangzu, the general secretary of the army, bowed his head and said as he stepped out of the ranks.

It wasn't that Hai Rui had laid a good foundation. As General Lu, he had no good way to deal with these censors. Today, the censors finally did their job, but they had been punished too many times, so they could only do one thing and be trustworthy.

"Lord Lu, you are being modest. This may sound easy, but it is not something that a wise minister can do to maintain the policy. Hai Wenzhong is quite strict, so it is not easy to maintain the system." Zhu Yijun said with a smile, "It depends on the reward."

Following the rules of Xiao and Cao sounds like a foolish behavior of not having one's own opinions and only knowing how to follow the systems of predecessors and do things as they were supposed to. However, Zhu Yijun knew very well that being able to follow the rules of Xiao and Cao was already a very difficult thing.

The reward was not very valuable, it was just a brocade cloak made of peacock feathers. It was not expensive, but it represented the emperor's recognition.

As long as Lu Guangzu didn't make any mistakes, his life and death would be taken care of, and his affairs before and after death would be watched over by the emperor himself.

Taking care of life and death is the promise Zhu Yijun can make to his subjects.

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace." Lu Guangzu saw the reward and expressed his gratitude solemnly. Lu Guangzu did not ask for the same treatment as Hai Rui after his death. He only hoped that after his death, he could be buried in the Western Hills Mausoleum and become a member of the list of heroes of the Wanli Reform, which would be recorded in history.

Hai Wenzhong and Hai Rui sought glory and got it, so naturally there will be people who will follow them.

The Ming Dynasty did not have very clear regulations on the crime of corruption. What behavior was considered corruption? What behavior was considered rent-seeking? The Ming Dynasty Code did not make a detailed classification.

Lu Guangzu and his censors deeply understood the vagueness of the definition, and in the fight against corruption, they began to investigate from the perspective of "huge amounts of wealth of unknown origin", with very good results.

This may seem like an indiscriminate pocket crime, but for the administration of officials, the intensity is just right.

The Censorate now has a new set of procedures.

The censors heard about things through various channels and obtained clues. After touring the local areas, they began to conduct secret investigations.
After obtaining some evidence, they would ask the governor's office to temporarily detain the person. During the investigation, he would still be an official and no punishment would be imposed;
If the arrest is not successful and the person resists investigation, the yamen runners, patrol officers, and military officers of the Dusi will be dispatched in turn; if that still fails, they will request military officers of other Dusi in other places;
After the arrest, additional investigations will begin. If the case is very complicated, the inspector will report it to the Censorate and ask the Censorate to send a deputy Censor-in-Chief to investigate.

If the investigation by the Chief Censor of the Censorate is not going well, or even if local resistance is serious, then the only option is to ask the Imperial Guards to go;
If even the imperial guards are of no use, we can only ask the Beijing troops for help.

In most cases, there was no need for imperial guards or even soldiers from other places. When the runners from the governor's office went to detain the criminals with "vague tickets", the criminals basically looked as pale as death, and could not even walk steadily, and were taken away trembling.

A warrant is a formal document used by local government offices to summon people and perform official duties. Normal official documents have clear matters and clear instructions. A warrant that is vague means that the censor has already obtained some solid evidence. If he tells the truth, he can get leniency. If he resists firmly, he will die.

Lu Guangzu had the responsibility, methods, ability and means to lead the Censorate. After Hai Rui left, he was still able to lead the Censorate to perform its functions, fight corruption and rectify the administration of officials.

"Prince Lu is going to be enfeoffed." Zhu Yijun looked at the ministers and said, "Prince Lu has chosen Jinshan City, and I agree. What do you think of Jinshan City?"

Wang Chonggu bowed his head and said, "Jinshan City is one of the sources of gold for the Ming Dynasty. It is the law of our ancestors that Prince Lu guards the city. But Your Majesty, does the Holy Mother agree to this?"

All the civil and military officials in the court were in trouble, but only Wang Chonggu, relying on his old age, broke the window paper.

The fiefdom that was granted to a place as far away as Jinshan City was the royal palace established by our ancestors, that is, "if the country is in a dangerous place, when there is an alarm, regardless of urgency, the country and the regular soldiers will be dispatched by the king."

He is a prince who possesses military power and can deploy troops, rather than a prince who is kept in the palace, has to strictly abide by the rules of the vassal state and can do nothing.

The Pacific Ocean is very large, and even though there are many talented people in Prince Lu's Mansion, they pose no threat to the heartland of the Ming Dynasty.

The reason why Prince Lu wanted to go so far away was to exchange space for power. Zhu Yiliu could not accept being confined in a vassal state and treated as a waste for the rest of his life no matter what.

He is the Prince of Lu who grew up with Your Majesty, not a follower.

Prince Lu was willing to endure this hardship, the emperor agreed, and the court officials could also accept it. After all, the gold in Jinshan City was one of the sources of wealth for the Ming Dynasty.

The biggest question is whether Empress Dowager Li is willing to do so?
"Mother doesn't agree." Zhu Yijun shook his head, looking a little helpless.

It had been three days since Zhu Yijun returned to Shuntian Prefecture, but Empress Dowager Li refused to see the emperor. Zhu Yijun went to pay his respects to her three times, but was not able to see her.

If Zhu Yijun insisted on carrying out the plan and made Prince Lu a fief in Jinshan City, Empress Dowager Li would really starve herself to death and make Zhu Yijun live his whole life in guilt and infamy.

"Your Majesty, since the Holy Mother does not agree, we should take the long view." Wang Chonggu bowed his head and said very respectfully.

"Let's prepare for the vassalage first. Prince Lu said he would find a way to convince mother." Zhu Yijun rubbed his brows.

Zhu Yijun was not allowed to see her when he came to pay his respects, and Zhu Yiliu was given a chance to visit her, but Empress Dowager Li refused to see anyone.

(End of this chapter)