I am Emperor Wanli

Chapter 711 No One Is Reconciled

The interior of Yongkang Hou Xu Qiaosong's carriage was very luxurious.

The walls of the room were covered with velvet produced by the Jiangning Weaving Bureau Silk Corporation, "Mochou Lake" brand, a famous brand in Jiangnan. If an ordinary family got one, it would become a family heirloom.

The inner wall of Xu Qiaosong's carriage was made of at least two or three horses. It was inlaid with patterns embroidered with gold and silver threads, and an oil lamp was hung at each corner of the carriage, shining with golden light.

The seats are custom-made leather sofas, and you can tell from the touch that they are lambskin from the Chahar grassland. Plus, the steel springs carefully crafted by the Luanzhou Steel Plant make it very comfortable to sit on.

Xu Qiaosong, wearing a Feiyu suit, looked at Gu Huan, Marquis of Zhenyuan, and Xue Han, Marquis of Yangwu, who were sitting opposite him.

The two men were wearing python robes and had solemn expressions.

Xu Qiaosong said, "Lord Guozhang, Lord Gu, and Lord Hu suddenly fell ill, and the Rong government is leaderless."

Gu Huan stroked his beard and replied, "It's not like there's no leader. We still have the Five Military Commandery. This military government is like the cabinet, and the Five Military Commandery is like the six ministries. Lord Hu is just in charge of the banner, and the Five Military Commandery is still doing the specific work."

You old fox, you clearly know what I mean, but you are trying to fool me here.

Xu Qiaosong continued calmly, "Mr. Gu, no matter what, someone has to take charge. The Rong government has so many important military affairs to attend to every day, how can we allow them to be delayed?"

Xue Han suddenly asked, "Old Xu, do you want to run the Rong government? Good, you have ambition, I, Old Xue, support you!"

Xu Qiaosong almost choked on his saliva.

My father-in-law, you are so bold to say that!
However, Xue Han's words forced Xu Qiaosong to express his opinion and he dared not beat around the bush any more.

"With Lord Gu here, how dare I have such delusions!"

Gu Huan shook his head, "I am old and powerless!"

Xu Qiaosong said quickly: "Mr. Gu is too modest. Mr. Gu is a veteran of three dynasties. He has guarded Nanjing, rectified the grain transport, pacified Guangdong and Guangxi, suppressed Japanese pirates, and managed the Beijing camp.

As the leader of the military government, Mr. Gu is the popular choice. "

Xue Han glanced at Gu Huan. What Old Xu said was right. Old Gu was different from other nobles who just lived a life of idleness and waiting for death. He was a capable and capable minister among the nobles.

I remember that he served as a guard for the Red Helmet General when he was young.

After inheriting the title, he was appointed by Emperor Shizong to garrison Nanjing, where he reviewed cases and redressed many injustices.

In the 1538th year of Jiajing (), he was entrusted with the task of supervising the grain transport in times of crisis. He requested to reduce or exempt the grain transport in disaster-stricken areas, and also suggested seven matters concerning the grain transport administration. Although his achievements were not as great as those of Wang Yi'e, it was a great feat that he was able to maintain the normal operation of this trivial matter of grain transport.

In the 29th year of Jiajing's reign, he was ordered to go to Guangdong and Guangxi to govern. He made an agreement with the governor Zhou Yan to order Mo Hongxi to succeed him as the governor-general of Annan to temporarily put an end to the civil unrest in Annan.

In the 33rd year of Jiajing's reign, he was summoned back to the capital to supervise the military affairs of the Beijing camp. The northern barbarians invaded the border many times, and Lao Gu was in a difficult situation. He tried his best to maintain the defense of the Beijing camp, so that the Gengxu Incident did not happen again.

By the way, people in the world commented on him as "having served three dynasties, and his loyalty and diligence were quite remarkable."

It is quite high, as high as the Chaoyang Gate Tower.

But Xu Qiaosong pushed Lao Gu out at this time and supported him as the chief military and political envoy. He must have had some good intentions!

Let's see how he responds.

Gu Huan's eyes sparkled and he laughed.

Xu Qiaosong's little trick seemed to be transparent in his eyes.

"What the Marquis of Yongkang said is not true. It is true that I have experienced many military affairs, but I am too old to handle such heavy tasks. I just want to enjoy my remaining years in peace.

Yang Wuhou is right. Yongkanghou has lofty ambitions and should be able to compete for this position. I will definitely support him."

No matter how eloquent Xu Qiaosong was, Gu Huan just wouldn't give in.

When they arrived at East Street in Chang'an, Xue Han made an excuse that he had something to do, asked the carriage to stop aside, and pulled Gu Huan out of the carriage.

Looking through the car window at Xue Han pulling Gu Huan into the Xue Mansion's carriage, Xu Qiaosong sneered.

The carriage of the Xue Mansion started, and Xue Han could not help but curse, "Marquis Yongkang is such a bastard, he wants to drag you and me into this, he is really trying to fish in troubled waters!"

Gu Huan laughed, "Old Xue, it's good that you know what's going on. I can easily talk to you, but you, the father-in-law, have to keep calm."

Xue Han smiled bitterly. Of course he had to stay calm, because his son-in-law in Xiyuan was not a good person.

"Alas, I know I have to be cautious. We are now in the noble family and have no time to take care of ourselves, so how can we have the energy to get involved in the Rong government?"

"Yes, I am too busy to take care of myself. After Duke Wei passed away, the Emperor has not revealed anything yet. Who will he choose to inherit the title?"

"Back then, the emperor sent Hai Qingtian, Wang Yi'e and Zhang Juzheng to investigate Huai salt. A major case arose, the chief culprit Liu Shiyan was killed, and the title of Marquis Chengyi was stripped.

The seven accomplices involved in the case, including Zhang Tong, Marquis of Longping, Zhao Zuzheng, Earl of Xincheng, and Wang Liang, Earl of Chengshan, were executed along with their entire families, and their titles were stripped. The rest of the nobles in Nanjing were all ordered to move to the capital.

The Duke of Wei's eldest son Xu Bangrui and his second son Xu Bangning were both the main culprits. Now that Xu Pengju has died of illness and the Duke of Wei's throne is hanging in the balance, the Xu family is staring out in fear. Unfortunately, they are all daydreaming."

Gu Huan was shocked, "Old Xue, the emperor wants to remove the Duke of Wei from his title as well?"

Xue Han smiled bitterly and said, "As a son-in-law, there is nothing I dare not do. Old Gu, you know about the affairs of the Duke of Qian's Mansion."

Gu Huan sighed and said, "Of course I know."

Duke of Qian Mu Chaobi was the son of the fifth Duke of Qian Mu Shaoxun and the younger brother of the sixth Duke of Qian Mu Chaofu.

In June of the 1547th year of Jiajing (), Mu Chaofu died, and his four-year-old son Mu Rong succeeded him as Duke of Qian. As Mu Rong was still young, Mu Chaobi was appointed by Emperor Shizong as the deputy governor to guard Yunnan on behalf of his nephew.

In June of the 28th year of Jiajing, Mu Rong died suddenly at the age of six, and his brother Mu Gong inherited the title of Duke of Qian. A series of misfortunes frightened Mu Shaoxun's wife, Li.

He petitioned the court to summon Mu Gong and his mother Chen to live in Beijing. However, before the imperial edict reached Yunnan, Mu Gong suddenly fell ill and died. This matter was widely discussed in the court, especially among the nobles, causing quite a stir.

Gu Huan also discussed this matter with his friends and felt that Mu Chaobi was ambitious and reckless.

If all the noble dukes, marquises and earls acted as recklessly as he did, it would not only disrupt the hereditary system of the nobles, but would also give the emperor and the civil service group an opportunity to take advantage.

The relationship between the emperor, the noble group, and the civil service group is very delicate.

However, Yunnan, where the Mu family was stationed, was far away from the emperor, and the civil service group had no interest in getting involved there. So in March of the 33rd year of Jiajing, Emperor Shizong issued an edict to let Mu Chaobi inherit the title of Duke of Qian.

Mu Chaobi is ambitious and reckless, but he is indeed capable.

In the 30th year of Jiajing, Na Jian, a native official of Yuanjiang Prefecture, rebelled against the Ming Dynasty. Mu Chaobi, then deputy governor, and Shi Jian, chief censor, led five armies to attack the city. On the way, the army was hit by miasma, and Shi Jian ran away first to show respect. Mu Chaobi had no choice but to withdraw his troops. After returning, he wrote a memorial to impeach Shi Jian, and led his troops to fight again, forcing Na Jian to have no choice but to commit suicide by taking poison.

In the 44th year of the Jiajing reign, Mu Chaobi captured Afang, the chieftain of Wuliangshan in Jingdong Prefecture, and his counselor Li Xiangyang, who had rebelled against the Ming Dynasty.

In the early years of Longqing's reign, he also put down the rebellion of Feng Jizu, the chieftain of Wuding Prefecture.

In mid-May, Wang Yi'e conquered the Tusi City of Bozhou. The victory news of the demise of the 600-year-old Tusi Yang family in Bozhou reached the capital only two days later when the Censorate and the Supervisory Office filed memorials to impeach the Duke of Qian, Mu Chaobi, for being arrogant and lawless, not treating his mother, Li, properly, raping his sister-in-law, Chen, seizing his brother's land and property, hiding the criminal Jiang Xu, and using the mobilization order to send people to the capital to spy on the court.
These crimes are outrageous. I implore the emperor to severely punish them.

Everyone is not a fool!
These impeachments have occurred every year since the 40th year of Jiajing's reign. The sudden deaths of the brothers Mu Rong and Mu Gong are all related to Mu Chaobi.

The Censorate once made some fuss, but Emperor Shizong ignored it for the sake of stability in Yunnan.

Seeing that their superiors remained unmoved and had received hush money from Mu Chaobi, the censors gradually stopped their activities.

There was another incident in the first year of the Longqing reign, but it still ended in nothing.

Now these impeachments were suddenly dug out from the pile of old papers and pointed at Mu Chaobi. It was nothing more than Wang Yi'e and Yin Zhengmao joining forces to remove the biggest troublemaker among the Sichuan and Guizhou chieftains, the Bozhou Yang family.

The other Shuixi An family and Xuyong She family have all become worthless. The imperial court can reach directly into Yunnan and no longer needs Mu Chaobi as a chamber pot!
Everyone who is interested knows the temper of Emperor Wanli. He will never allow royal family members, nobles and relatives to occupy local areas and abuse their power in the Ming Dynasty!
Upon receiving the impeachment, Xiyuan immediately issued a stern decree to reprimand the accusation, ordering the Rong government to send an urgent message eight hundred miles away to the Mansion of the Duke of Qian in Yunnan, as well as the Yunnan Regional Military Commission, various guards, and various military and civilian offices, and to issue an imperial decree to summon Mu Chaobi to the capital!

The situation is very clear. If Mu Chaobi were to come to the capital in compliance with the imperial edict, he would inevitably be demoted. But what if you refuse to obey the imperial edict?
I guarantee you will die if you try it!

Gu Huan had already made plans for Mu Chaobi in his mind. He brought a large amount of gold, silver and jewelry to the capital. On the way, he asked his trusted confidants to bring the money to the capital first, and then he would go around and help speak good words in front of the emperor to reduce his guilt.

He would slowly wander around on the road, and when all the relationships were sorted out, he would go to the capital to confess his crime.

There is still a chance of survival if you obey the imperial edict and go to the capital, but you will definitely die if you dare not obey the imperial edict.

No one in the whole world dared to act arrogantly in front of Emperor Wanli.

Gu Huan stroked his beard, shook his head and said, "Mr. Hu was appointed as the Grand Secretary of the Xuancheng County, in charge of the military government and the military and state affairs. These people thought that the emperor wanted to restore the old system of Emperor Taizu and Emperor Chengzu, with checks and balances between civil and military officials.

Why don’t they understand that even if there is a balance between civil and military power, and military officials are in charge of the military government, it won’t be the turn of us nobles.”

Xue Han blinked his eyes, "That's right, Mr. Tan was conferred the title of Marquis of Dongning because of his military merits. The title is hereditary, just like Mr. Hu, he is also a nobleman, but he is..."

Xue Han and Gu Huan said in unison: "New noble!"

Gu Huan laughed loudly, "They don't know their own capabilities. These guys don't know their own capabilities!"

As I laughed, I couldn't help wiping the tears from my eyes.

"I'm old now. Every time I laugh, I cry."

Xue Han looked at him and slowly put away his smile.

The carriage passed through Xinlianzi Hutong and Jiulian Hutong. Every household here had a small troupe, which was the kind of troupe that specialized in performing in the houses of wealthy families and private performances. Sometimes they also provided additional services, and they were not very serious troupes.

The carriage continued to move forward and arrived at Chunshu Hutong, where there lived a troupe of actors, that is, a serious opera troupe that performed publicly in theaters and made a living entirely by their skills.

At the entrance of the alley, there is a large wooden sign as tall as the courtyard wall, with many small wooden signs hung on it, with words such as Kunqu Opera Troupe, Hui Opera Troupe, Haiyan Troupe, Yuediao Troupe, etc. There are more than fifty wooden signs in total, all of which are troupes from all over the country.

There were actors singing in the courtyards of various classes to practice their voices. From the courtyards facing the main street floated the lyrics of the song: "I remember that you were a famous general at Changbanpo. You fought Cao's troops with a spear and no one could stop you. Now you are old and your hair is as white as frost. How can you compare to Jiang Boyao, who was full of vigor and vitality?"

Gu Huan beat the rhythm with his right hand on his leg and sang along softly. When the song was finished, he said loudly, "Good, good singing! This Henan Yuediao "Recruiting Jiang Wei" is sung well and wonderfully!"

Xue Han echoed, "It's really a wonderful song."

He stared at Gu Huan and said, "Old Gu, we are in this position and we can't avoid it even if we want to."

Gu Huan asked: "Father-in-law, you also have an idea."

"Marquis Yongkang suddenly showed up, he must be unwilling to accept this. Old Gu, are you willing to accept this?"

"Father-in-law, what if you are unwilling? Even if your heart is higher than the sky, do you dare to fight against the sky?"

Xue Han sighed, "Those of us who can carry heavy responsibilities have either followed Qi Laiyang to the Western Expedition or fought against the natives in the South China Sea, all to earn military merit and bring glory to the family. The rest are all second-generation descendants, and are useless."

The Xue family has Xue Lin and Xue Yi, Gu Huan also has his cousin Gu Yuan, and Song Shien's Xining Marquis lineage includes not only Song Gongliang but also his nephew Song Kebing.

Duke of Chengguo Zhu Xizhong had a nephew Zhu Qian, Duke of Gongshun Wu Jijue had a bastard son Wu Rufang, Duke of Wu'an Zheng Kun had a nephew Zheng Liang, and Duke of Anyuan Liu Zhen had a bastard son Liu Siyi.
He served as a military student in Qi Jiguang's army during the Western Expedition, or in the armies of Yu Dayou, Zhang Yuanxun and others in Nanhai, killing enemies and making great contributions.

They are all nephews or nieces of the clan, or illegitimate sons, providing an additional layer of insurance for the family's wealth.

The legitimate son would never take risks.

They have the benefit of hereditary succession, and they can become rich just by lying down, so why bother working so hard?

Isn’t it nice to eat, drink and have fun?

"But they are of no use in the capital. They have too little experience and military achievements to convince the people!" Gu Huan shook his head and looked at Xue Han, his brows suddenly relaxed, "Father-in-law, we are indeed involved in this matter. Even if we don't go into the water, the strong wind and waves will splash us with water.

We must think of a way to protect ourselves."

"How do you protect yourself?"

"Then you need to think of a solution, Father-in-law!"

Gu Huan emphasized the last three words very much.

Seeing the expression on Xue Han's face, he knew that he understood what he said, but was just a little hesitant.

"Old friend, we rise and fall together. Our future and prosperity depend on you."

Xue Han smiled bitterly, "Old Gu, you suddenly gave me such a heavy burden, I'm afraid I can't bear it. To be honest, as a father-in-law, I can't help but tremble in my legs when I see my son-in-law!"

Gu Huan was so disappointed that he stomped his foot on the floor of the carriage, "Old Xue, you are so stupid! Why don't you try another way? Try another route!"

Hearing the stomping sound, the coachman in front of the carriage quickly pulled the horse and stopped at the side of the road. The attendant sitting in the back of the carriage jumped down and asked at the door: "My Lord, what's the matter?"

"It's okay. The Marquis of Zhenyuan felt his feet were numb, so he stamped his feet twice and continued walking back to the mansion."

"Yes!"

(End of this chapter)