I am Emperor Wanli

Chapter 353 Xu Jie and Yang Jinshui play a guessing game

"The Emperor of Fengtian Chengyun proclaims that those who inherited the emperor's plan and established the people's rule in ancient times must have pillars of support to help the country prosper. I look forward to the Yuanfu, who has taken charge of the virtuous plan and assisted the previous dynasty. He obeys the emperor's orders and follows the will of the people. He is able to be sincere and loyal.

Xu, the Grand Secretary of Jianji Palace, was a scholar of literature and hardworking for the royal family. He studied a hundred things to seek the middle way, and studied the four virtues to correct the root. He was promoted to the position of Sikong, and was granted the title of Guanglu Dafu, with double salary.

Those with great talents will be given high positions, and those with great achievements will be rewarded generously. This is the way the people look up to, and it is a shining example for the country. I decree this!"

Xu Jie knelt behind the incense table, and Yang Jinshui stood in front of the incense table. He read the imperial edict loudly, and then said with a smile: "Mr. Xu, the imperial edict has been read. Thank you."

"Your Highness Xu Jie thanks you for your grace. Long live the Emperor."

Xu Jie kowtowed and shouted. Yang Jinshui handed the imperial edict to the eunuch next to him, lifted up his lapel, took a few steps forward, and helped Xu Jie up.

"Mr. Xu, the emperor's grace is truly immense. The Xu family is extremely glorious and should be the most aristocratic family in the land."

With the help of Yang Jinshui, Xu Jie stood up tremblingly.

The muscles on his face trembled slightly, and he said modestly: "Eunuch Yang is too polite. The Xu family dare not boast of glory. We are just doing our duty. It is all because of the kindness of the emperor and the prince. They love this old minister so much.

May I ask if Eunuch Yang has no urgent business to attend to for the time being? "

"I'm free today. What a coincidence! Today, the eunuchs in the Imperial Household Department are all busy, so they pulled me from the Imperial Household Department and assigned me this task. It's a blessing that I can't even ask for to receive the emperor's order at the Xu Mansion, and it actually fell on my head."

Although Yang Jinshui was the eunuch in charge of the seal of the Shaofujian, he also held the title of the eunuch in charge of the Silijian. He was a senior eunuch in the Silijian and was responsible for carrying out orders and issuing imperial decrees, which was also his job.

"That's good. Since Eunuch Yang has no important business, please come to my study and serve tea. I got some Huangshan tea a few days ago, and I can barely entertain you. Please have a taste, Eunuch Yang."

"Then we are lucky to be here. This tea must be extraordinary if it can catch Mr. Xu's eye."

The two of them sat down in the study, and several eunuchs stood outside the door and window, keeping the idlers away. A steward brought two cups of hot tea and left quickly.

"Eunuch Yang has returned to the capital from the southeast, it has been a while."

"It's been more than half a year." Yang Jinshui picked up the teacup and took a few sips of the aroma. "It really is a collection of the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, and the essence of the sun and the moon. The aroma enters the lungs and penetrates the heart. It is not an ordinary product. I'm afraid that only Mr. Xu can drink it in the whole world."

Xu Jie narrowed his eyes slightly and looked at Yang Jinshui sighing there.

You damn eunuch, you are trying to trick me again.

I can only drink it here, I can't even drink it in the Forbidden City and the West Garden. Are you secretly saying that I live a more luxurious life than the emperor and the prince?

It's never a good thing when a night owl comes into the house.

Instead of sending Feng Bao, Chen Ju or Qi Yan, he sent Yang Jinshui, the least prominent but most intelligent and trustworthy person in the Imperial Household Department, to announce the decree.

Your Highness, what is going on here?

Do you want the king and his subjects to part ways in a dignified manner?

Such a simple matter could be done by sending Qi Yan or Chen Ju, but they had to send Yang Jinshui. The mystery behind it was not that simple.

Then let's try it out slowly.

"The tea from Jiangnan is still the best!" Yang Jinshui took two sips of hot tea, closed his eyes and sighed, as if he had eaten herbal medicine.

He opened his eyes and said to Xu Jie: "Mr. Xu, Jiangnan is still the best place. We have lived there for several years and are reluctant to leave."

You are reluctant to leave, and the wealthy families in Jiangnan are eager for you to leave as soon as possible.

Xu Jie stroked his beard and replied, "Eunuch Yang is absolutely right. I am originally from Jiangnan. In the second year of Jiajing, I passed the examination and became an official. I have rarely returned to Jiangnan.

Now I am old and frail, and I miss my hometown more and more. 'The autumn wind blows and leaves fly, the Wujiang River is full of perch.' Zhang Han of the Former Jin Dynasty heard the autumn wind and thought of the perch.

I can’t help but think of the coming of spring, and the loquat tree I planted in front of the hall when I was young is about to bloom and bear fruit again.”

Yang Jinshui's face changed, and he asked in surprise, "Mr. Xu, do you intend to resign and return home?"

Today's imperial edict has hinted so clearly that of course I must understand the elegant meaning by listening to the music.

"In public, I have held the highest rank for nine years, violating the court's official system; privately, I have been away from home for decades, and now I am seventy, it is time for me to return to my roots.

For both public and private reasons, I want to retire and return home."

Yang Jinshui heard Xu Jie's affirmative words and knew that he would not dare to play tricks in such an important matter.

The first task I came here to do today has been completed, so the second task will follow.

Yang Jinshui pondered for more than ten breaths, shook his head and said, "Alas, what a pity. The prince often told us servants that the cabinet has been able to stabilize the situation in the past two years thanks to Lord Xu. Now is the time for His Royal Highness the Prince to work hard to govern the country, but Lord Xu wants to retire at the peak of his career. It's really a pity! It also makes people worry about who can take the helm in the court."

Xu Jie quickly said modestly: "Eunuch Yang, what you said is too much!
Your Highness the Crown Prince is the pillar of our Ming Dynasty. If I follow the horse's tail, I can travel a thousand miles; if I climb the wings of a swan, I can fly across the four seas. I dare not take credit for it, I absolutely do not dare to take credit for it.

Now the cabinet has Li Zishi and Zhang Shuda, the six ministries have Gao Suqing, and the Censorate has Zhao Mengjing. They are all outstanding people of the time, and their talents far exceed mine.

With their assistance, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince can achieve great success in this world."

The two were still testing each other, going in circles back and forth.

Yang Jinshui's face was filled with regret. "Alas, what a pity. We have just returned to Beijing for more than half a year, and Mr. Xu is leaving Beijing to return to his hometown. What should we do?"

The drama is coming!

Xu Jie asked calmly, "Why did Eunuch Yang say that?"

"My family manages the Shaofu for the Crown Prince and the inner treasury for the royal family, so we conflict with the Ministry of Revenue and the National Treasury in everything.

I'm not afraid of being laughed at by Mr. Xu. If our family takes more from the inner treasury, the Ministry of Revenue will take less from the national treasury. If the Ministry of Revenue takes more from the national treasury, our family will take less from the inner treasury.

The most troublesome thing is that there is a tall bearded man in the Ministry of Revenue. He has a bad temper, a hard character, and ruthless means. Without Xu Gong's mediation and pressure in the cabinet, we can't defeat him!"

Haha, you are too modest. There are no two people in the world who can defeat you, at least Gao Gong is not one of them.

Although Gao Xinzheng is capable, resourceful and scheming, he is still inferior to you. Especially Gao Xinzheng's bad temper is his biggest weakness, and he can be easily caught by others.

How can he compare with you? He is no match for you at all!

But Xu Jie keenly grasped the message conveyed by Yang Jinshui, and knew that as soon as he retired and returned to his hometown, Gao Gong would be appointed to the cabinet.

How can the Minister of Revenue, who has not yet become a cabinet minister, be qualified to become the eunuch in charge of writing in the Imperial Household Department, a rival to the four great eunuchs in the inner court!

And you have to listen to the words in reverse.

If you really believe what Yang Jinshui said, that he and Gao Gong from the Ministry of Revenue are incompatible, then you have been fooled.

On the surface, Yang Jinshui and Gao Gong, one was the Junior Supervisor of the Treasury and the other was the Minister of Revenue, one was in charge of the Internal Treasury and the other was in charge of the National Treasury, and they were both fighting for money, so they were definitely confronting each other and fighting openly and secretly.

But if you really understand the actual situation, you will understand that Gaogong Pipe collects money and spends money, while Yangjin Water Pipe makes money.

The source of the Ministry of Revenue's treasury is taxes. The first is the land tax and the capitation tax, so Gao Gong has to survey the land and compile household registrations; the second is the salt tax, which is currently in the hands of Pang Shangpeng of the Salt Administration; and the third is the industrial and commercial tax, which is in the hands of Yang Jinshui.

From the current perspective, the biggest expense is the land tax and the population tax, but the amount of land and population is limited, and the upper limit is there, so it is impossible to exploit and oppress them endlessly.

Salt tax accounts for a large proportion, but the annual output and usage are also constants and have an upper limit. It is impossible for the people to eat salt as a meal.

Then industrial and commercial taxes have the greatest potential, and there is currently no upper limit.

In the past few years, the amount of silver has grown rapidly from hundreds of thousands of taels to millions of taels, and the momentum is extremely fierce. In the future, it is possible to reach 10 or 20 million taels of silver.

All the knowledgeable people in the court know this.

Therefore, it can be seen that Gao Gong and Yang Jinshui were actually in the same group. The bigger Yang Jinshui's business was, the more taxes Gao Gong collected.

With His Royal Highness the Crown Prince backing them up, the two of them must be in the same group!

Xu Jie also heard the hidden meaning of Yang Jinshui's words. After Gao Gong entered the cabinet, he naturally became an ally of Gao Gong. Officials in charge of finance, taxation and economy, such as Wang Guoguang and Pang Shangpeng, were their natural allies.

Everyone's work is interconnected and mutually beneficial, and we must cooperate with each other and work together to improve our performance. If anyone in the middle drags down, it will affect everyone in the circle.

They have formed an alliance, their strength should not be underestimated, and they will continue to seize power.

If you want to get things done, you have to take on the power.

Before this, Gao Gong had taken a lot of power from Xu Jie's party, especially in terms of land survey, and had taken a lot of meat from the Jiangnan party headed by Xu Jie.

Once Xu Jie stepped down, Gao Gong entered the cabinet and formed an alliance with Yang Jinshui, which made him even more powerful. So who would be the first to bear the brunt of the power sharing and seizure?

Zhang Juzheng!

The two forces that will fight the most fiercely in the cabinet in the future will definitely be Gao Gong and Zhang Juzheng.

(End of this chapter)