I am Emperor Wanli

Chapter 9 Xu Wenchang

Hu Zongxian was reading in a study room in the inner courtyard of the post house. He had been reading for an hour and had not even turned three pages of the book.

"Master!" a trusted follower reported outside the door.

"What's the matter?" Hu Xianzong asked impatiently.

"Master, Mr. Xu is here."

"Mr. Xu?" Hu Zongxian hadn't reacted yet.

"Mr. Buncho."

"Xu Wenchang is here!" Hu Zongxian dropped the book and ran out.

When he arrived at the second courtyard, he bumped into Xu Wei, Xu Wenchang, who was led in by the servants.

"Wenchang, you are finally here. Well, how come you came so soon? It's only been twenty days since I sent out the letter." Hu Zongxian took Xu Wei's arm and said sincerely, then asked curiously.

"Brother Ruzhen, I received your urgent letter that you sent over 600 miles. There happened to be a ship from Ningbo to Tianjin. I boarded that ship and sailed north. With the wind and the water, I arrived in Tianjin in ten days. Then I took the North Grand Canal and reached the capital in two or three days."

Hu Zongxian asked in surprise: "Oh, the sea route from Zhejiang to Northern Zhili is open?"

Xu Wei replied happily: "It is open! Once the Japanese threat in Zhejiang is eliminated, the sea route will be open immediately."

Hu Zongxian said with relief: "That's good. It's worth our painstaking planning and the sacrifice of thousands of soldiers."

As they talked, they walked into the study arm in arm and sat down next to each other.

The servant brought the tea and left.

Hu Zongxian stood up, looked around at the door, made a gesture, and told his trusted followers to watch and not allow anyone else to approach the door and windows, and then closed the door.

Seeing that he was so cautious, Xu Wei knew that there was something important to discuss, so he waited quietly.

"Wen Chang, these past twenty days have been like a year for me!"

Hu Zongxian began with an exclamation, and then told Xu Wei in detail what he had encountered in the past few days.

Xu Wei also felt a headache after hearing this and pondered Hu Zongxian's words over and over in his mind.

"Brother Ruzhen, you said that you went to the Western Garden to meet the emperor and mentioned the suppression of the Japanese in Fujian. The emperor said that he had no money. The prince mentioned Yan Maoqing's salt inspection in Lianghuai. Then the emperor realized that Yan Maoqing and Yan Shifan had colluded privately and embezzled 2.2 million taels of the 5.5 million taels of silver."

"Yes."

"The emperor got furious in front of you, and then the prince proposed to set up a Southeastern Food and Pay Coordination Office to suppress the Japanese invaders."

"Yes. I asked Zhejiang and Fujian merchants and scholars in Beijing to jointly write a memorial and asked Fujian officials in Beijing to deliver it."

"Any follow-up?"

"Nothing happened."

"Then Yan Song's wife, Ouyang, died of illness, and Yan Song carried the coffin back to his hometown. Yan Shifan was deprived of his love and retained his position to supervise the construction of the three main halls and the Wanshou Palace?"

"Yes. The day before yesterday, the Imperial Censor submitted a memorial accusing Yan Shifan of drinking and indulging himself in sex in his residence, not abiding by the rules, and violating filial piety and human ethics."

"Is there any follow-up to the memorial?"

"No follow-up." Hu Zongxian frowned and said worriedly, "Wen Chang, that day in Xiyuan, the emperor and the prince gave me great hope. They planned to set up a Southeast Anti-Japanese Food and Pay Coordination Office. If there is no worry about food and pay, I can lead my officers and soldiers to wipe out the Japanese pirates in Fujian.

But twenty days have passed, and there is no news. I am so anxious and restless. "Xu Wei roughly understood the situation, sat there, and sighed: "Brother Ruzhen, the emperor is playing a big game, and you, and the matter of suppressing the Japanese in Fujian, are just a move on the chessboard. It is useless for you to be anxious."

Hu Zongxian asked: "What big chess game? Does it have anything to do with our going to Fujian to fight against the Japanese?"

Xu Wei smiled and said, "Brother Ruzhen, you are so anxious that you are confused. You are not as calm and composed as when you were in Nanzhili and Zhejiang commanding the army to suppress the Japanese invaders."

Hu Zongxian sighed, "Wen Chang, I am branded with the stigma of the Yan Party, which cannot be washed away. Now that the Yan Party has lost power, I am extremely anxious. It doesn't matter if I am demoted, but the suppression of the Japanese in the southeast must be completed. The blood of so many people with lofty ideals cannot be shed in vain.

But our dynasty has always abandoned things because of people. The suppression of the Japanese in the southeast was the achievement of the Yan Party. I fought against the Japanese in Zhejiang and won a series of victories, which brought glory to the Yan Party. If the Yan Party falls, I, and the suppression of the Japanese in the southeast, will be completely destroyed by them.

Wen Chang, these people only care about party disputes and have no idea of ​​right or wrong. "

Xu Wei also nodded solemnly: "Brother Ruzhen, I know you are worried about not doing things because of people. But the Southeast Anti-Japanese War cannot be delayed. The people have suffered for decades and finally have a chance to escape from the suffering. No matter what, we must do this."

Hu Zongxian's face was full of helplessness. "Wen Chang, I know. But the political situation is turbulent and I am caught in the vortex. I can't protect myself, and it's hard to repay the country!"

Xu Wei asked: "Do you hope that the Yan Party will fall, or not?"

Hu Zongxian pondered for a long time, "From a conscientious point of view, I hope that the Yan Party will fall. But I really hope that it will fall later, at least until I have completely wiped out the Japanese threat in the southeast. At that time, I will be at ease and will have no regrets to be buried with it.

Xu Wei's eyes were red and he was filled with emotion.

He was Hu Zongxian's most trusted aide. For many days and nights, they gathered together, thinking hard and discussing good strategies.

In the back, he had to avoid the open and concealed attacks, flatter the father and son of the Yan family, seek protection, and seek temporary expediency; in the front, he had to supervise the generals and their departments, plan combat plans, eliminate the Japanese threat, and save the local people from danger.

Work hard and devote all your energy.

We have finally come this far and are about to achieve complete victory, but we are faced with party struggles. We are worried that we will fail. How can we not be anxious?

Xu Wei comforted him, "Brother Ruzhen, from what you just said, I think this matter has a good chance of turning around."

"Transfer?"

Xu Wei considered and said, "Yes. I just sorted it out and found that the prince tied our Southeast Anti-Japanese War to the Southeast Anti-Japanese War Food and Pay Coordination Office."

"So what? Isn't the Southeastern Anti-Japanese Food and Pay Coordination Office responsible for raising food and pay for us?"

"No, it's not that simple. We need to see where the Southeastern Anti-Japanese Food and Pay Coordination Office is connected to?"

Hu Zongxian seemed to be a person standing in the foggy and dark night, and suddenly saw the light from the lighthouse.

He excitedly took Xu Wei's hand and said, "Wen Chang, you mean that if the Southeast Anti-Japanese Food and Pay Coordination Office is connected to the emperor's purse, we will be safe and the matter will be settled."

Xu Wei nodded affirmatively, "That's right."

Hu Zongxian leaned back in his chair and said leisurely, "'An old man in a straw hat and raincoat is fishing alone in a boat in the cold river.' Now I know who sent me the message. So this is his intention."

"Brother Ruzhen, what's going on?"

Hu Zongxian explained the situation, and Xu Wei asked curiously, "Brother Ruzhen, are you saying that the prince sent someone to tell you to keep only a thin line of contact with Yan Song and be a lone minister?"

"Yes. Now it seems that this is a preparation for now." After being pulled out of the fog, Hu Zongxian regained his previous wisdom, "Whether I am a member of the Yan Party or not does not depend on what the court and the public think, but on what the emperor in the Western Garden thinks!"

Xu Wei nodded in agreement: "That's right. In that case, the prince played a big role in this. An eight-year-old child is so amazing? I really want to meet him."

Hu Zongxian replied confidently: "Wen Chang, there will be a chance, perhaps soon."

(End of this chapter)