I am Emperor Wanli

Chapter 73 Don’t Hurt the Harmony

When Zhu Yijun returned to the Coordination Bureau, there was a new sign here, "Advisory Office of the Beijing Camp Military and Political Supervision Office."

Sitting opposite him were Zhao Zhenji and Xu Wei.

"Mr. Wenchang, have you collected everything?"

"In reply to the prince, everything has been sorted out." Xu Wei explained, "The Border Affairs Investigation Division has taken over the Jinyiwei's personnel in the Nine Frontiers. In addition to investigating the northern barbarians outside the Great Wall, there are also spies who are spying on the border towns and guards, and they have also been assigned to our Border Affairs Investigation Division.

Nangong Ye, a subordinate of Hu Bu Tang, sorted out the relevant documents. I went to Shanxi Town and Datong Town on the pretext of reorganizing the Border Affairs Investigation Department. Based on the information sorted out by Nangong Ye, I analyzed the clues and collected all the evidence.

Your Highness, those people in the border towns of Shanxi and Datong are fearless. They are taking advantage of everything, which is shocking. The border generals, officers and soldiers, governors, censors, and military supervisors in the border towns are all well fed by them, and even if they see something, they turn a blind eye. "

Zhao Zhenji said at the side: "Now the most important thing is to choose the right person to shoot this arrow. Your Highness, I recommend Hu Yingjia, the Minister of War."

"Hu Yingjia? Mr. Dazhou, please tell me about this person's background."

"Your Highness, Hu Yingjia, courtesy name Kerou, was born in Huai'an Prefecture, Nanzhili. He is the grandson of Nanjin Gong, who quelled the Portuguese Rebellion, and the son of Jinchen Gong, the former governor of Shuntian Prefecture. In the 35th year of Jiajing, he passed the imperial examination and became a Jinshi. He was initially appointed as the magistrate of Yichun County, Jiangxi Province. Soon after, he was appointed as the Imperial Censor of the Ministry of Personnel. Later, he moved to the capital for the third time.

When Yang Weiyue was in charge of the Ministry of War, Hu Kerou made several appeals, listing the accumulated problems in the nine frontiers and accusing Yang Weiyue of sitting back and doing nothing. Especially in Shanxi and Datong, due to their hometown sentiments, they indulged in favoritism, which led to the relaxation of border affairs and the decline of military preparations. "

Zhu Yijun asked: "So, Hu Yingjia and Yang Bo have a grudge?"

"Yang Weiyue is a man who is familiar with border affairs and is experienced and knowledgeable. But his biggest problem is that he is concerned about his hometown. The governors, prefectures and counties, censors, and border generals in the three border towns of Shanxi, Datong, and Xuanfu are mostly connected to the Jin Party. Many illegal and disorderly incidents were reported to the Ministry of War, but Yang Bo turned a blind eye."

"Haha, Yang Bo, you were known as a famous minister and capable official, and everyone in the world praised you for being honest and fair. I didn't expect you to be like this, corrupt and treacherous, and put the interests of the country before personal feelings. Mr. Dazhou, are you familiar with this Mr. Hu Kerou?"

"Your Highness, in the 34th year of the Jiajing reign, I was the Junior Secretary of the Guanglu Temple in Nanjing. I was ordered to be a co-examiner for the Nanzhili Provincial Examination. When I was reviewing the papers, I happened to see Kerou's paper."

Oh, Zhao Zhenji was Hu Yingjia’s teacher, and he also counted as a candidate in the provincial examination.

"Then please ask Mr. Dazhou to have a good talk with Mr. Hu. It is a good thing to eliminate the country's abuses, cut off the pests, and stabilize the border affairs."

"Please rest assured, Your Majesty, I will do my best."

In the study room of Gao Gong's mansion, Gao Gong walked back and forth with his hands behind his back, looking anxious.

Chen Xixue and Zhang Siwei sat aside, exchanging glances.

"Duke Xinzheng, where is Duke Weiyue?"

Yang Bo was the Minister of Personnel and one of the leaders of the Jin Party. Chen Xixue and Zhang Siwei felt uneasy when he did not show up.

Gao Gong stopped walking, turned around, stared at Chen Xixue and Zhang Siwei, and said bitterly: "Not only did you drag me into your mess, but you also want to trap Wei Yuegong in it, right?"

Chen Xixue said quickly: "Mr. Xinzheng, this is not a personal grudge. We are acting completely out of justice. Hu Zongxian and others are indeed the remnants of the Yan Party. Back then, they relied on the Yan Party's fierceness to run rampant in the southeast and persecute the scholars.

After joining the Crown Prince, he became even more arrogant. Now he is trying to get involved in the Nine Frontiers, intending to make a fortune from border affairs, fill the holes in the Coordination Bureau, flatter and serve the emperor. "

Gao Gong angrily scolded: "At this point, you are still talking nonsense here! You are confused, but I am not. You people colluded with the border generals, violated the ban on smuggling, and made huge profits. Don't you think I don't know?"

Neither Chen Xixue nor Zhang Siwei dared to speak.

Gao Gong slowly calmed down his anger.

Gao Gong was well aware of the dirty deeds of some members of the Jin Party.

But he knew in his heart that if the water was too clear, there would be no fish.

If you want to realize your ideals and ambitions, you need support from others and you have to form a party in secret.

To form a party, you need something to gather people's hearts and unite them.

Some people talk about morality, while others talk about benefits.

Some members of the Jin Party were involved in illegal smuggling, but Gao Gong turned a blind eye. The Jiangsu and Zhejiang Party in the southeast occupied a lot of land, went to sea illegally, made a lot of money, and then built academies and cultivated talents. In every subject of the southern list of the imperial examination, talents from Jiangsu and Zhejiang accounted for the majority.

Over time, he formed a huge force in the court.

If he wanted to reform and eliminate corruption and revive the Ming Dynasty, he had to enter the cabinet and become the prime minister. But everyone wanted to enter the cabinet and everyone was eyeing the position of prime minister.

If you want to get ahead, you must have someone to support you, and there are many people who support you.

The Jin Party controlled the salt trade and violated the ban on smuggling, making a fortune. Only then could they, like the Jiangsu and Zhejiang Party, promote education and cultivate talents. Only then could they occupy more places in the northern list of the imperial examination, and then accumulate into a force that could not be ignored and push themselves to the top.

You can't have your cake and eat it too.

To achieve political ambitions, some tolerance is necessary.

Gao Gong was very clear about this.

After a while, Gao Gong, who had slowly recovered his composure, spoke slowly.

"In the Wanshou Palace, we were one step behind. You must make up for it quickly and don't let the prince catch us. Hu Zongxian is now the Minister of War and the Governor of the Three Towns. He is watching you!"

Chen Xixue and Zhang Siwei looked at each other and said helplessly, "This is the only way. I will write a letter and ask Lao San to bribe the people in Datong Prefecture Prison to get rid of Bai Liangcai."

Zhang Siwei clapped his hands and praised: "Brother Chen, you are putting justice above your own. Great! But this alone is not enough, Brother Chen, Hu Zongxian is very shrewd, and he will catch you if you make any mistakes.

Brother Chen, don't be careless!"

Chen Xixue said in a deep voice: "It's nothing more than some illegal smuggling. We didn't get involved ourselves, but through some relatives and clansmen. If it really gets out of control, we will cut off these lines first.

Brother Ziwei, you should also pay attention to the matter of Pingyao Fengshanhao and don’t let Hu Zongxian catch you.”

Zhang Siwei's expression changed slightly, and he answered with a folded hand: "Thank you for your reminder, Brother Chen. I will handle it properly."

Gao Gong felt depressed when he saw this.

Zhang Siwei's family relied on Zhang Siwei's power to collude with the salt officials in Jiechi to obtain salt permits and make huge profits. Someone reported that Zhang Siwei's father was one of the top salt merchants in Jiechi and made a lot of money.

This matter was secretly suppressed by Gao Gong.

But the Zhang family was not satisfied yet. They used their relatives in Pingyao to set up Fengshanhao and got involved in illegal smuggling.

Gao Gong was too lazy to pay attention to them. He leaned back in his chair, tilted his head back, looked at the roof, and thought to himself.

Some people said that the Crown Prince would never let go of any grudge, and since the Jin Party had dealt him a heavy blow in the Wanshou Palace, he would definitely retaliate.

How to take revenge?

We are only at the first step of stripping him of his skin and bones, and haven't torn our relationship apart yet. We can just throw a few pawns to him to eat and vent our anger.

Are we really going to tear each other apart and fight to the death?
Thinking of this, Gao Gong said, "You should deal with the mess first. Zhang Shuda will be returning to Beijing from Liaodong soon. I am a tutor with him in Prince Yu's Palace, and we get along well.

Shuda is also the prince's tutor, and they have a teacher-student relationship. And his teacher is Xu Shaohu, so the prince doesn't care about the monk's face, but the Buddha's. When he comes back, I will invite him to my house and have a good chat.

Don’t do anything to hurt the harmony.”

Chen Xixue and Zhang Siwei nodded quickly: "Xin Zhenggong is right. It is most important not to hurt the harmony in everything."

A few days later, Gao Gong was on duty in the cabinet room when a clerk suddenly brought him a copy of a memorial.

"Gao, this is from Prime Minister Xu, asking you to review it."

Gao Gong was stunned. He took it and looked at it. His expression changed when he saw the title. After reading the content, his face turned pale, his hands trembled, and his forehead was covered with cold sweat.

　First update!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)