My father is Jiajing

After Li Chunfang was promoted to the Grand Secretary of Jianji Palace and the Chief Minister of the Cabinet, he immediately went to Zhu Zaigui to express his gratitude.

Zhu Zaigui sat high above the main hall of Wenhua Palace on the dragon throne that was almost the same shape as the emperor's dragon throne, looking down at Li Chunfang who came to express his gratitude and pay his respects.

When Li Chunfang entered the hall, he was so excited and frightened that he could hardly control himself. He knelt on the ground and knocked his head on the gold brick. He paid homage to Zhu Zaigui and said, "I, Li Chunfang, the Grand Secretary of Jianji Hall, pay my respects to the Crown Prince!"

Zhu Zaiqi smiled and raised his hand slightly, saying, "Mr. Li, please stand up. It will take some time for me to officially become the crown prince."

Li Chunfang immediately replied: "Your Highness, the Emperor has issued a decree to confer the title upon you. You are now the Crown Prince."

Li Chunfang's answer was the same as Xu Jie's previous answer.

It can be seen that Zhu Zaigui's title as the crown prince is now a consensus among everyone. Even if there is no official enthronement on the Double Ninth Festival on September 9th, it does not affect the fact that he is now called the crown prince.

"Mr. Li is really as straightforward as Lord Xu."

Zhu Zaigui smiled, picked up a cup of tea from the table and took a sip. He sighed, which made Li Chunfang's heart tremble.

Who is Xu Jie?
He is now nothing more than a stray dog ​​and a prisoner.

The prince actually used him to compare himself, what does this mean?
In fact, Zhu Zaigui didn't mean anything by it, he just said it casually.

But sometimes, a casual remark by an important politician can easily lead to multiple imaginations.

This is an inevitable fact, so in many cases, it is difficult for politicians to speak freely like ordinary people, and to joke and tell jokes with people around them.

Because no matter whether it is the people around him or the people who can hear these words, they can't help but think more about what the deeper meaning of this joke is.

So, this is Li Chunfang’s mood now.

Zhu Zaigui put down the teacup in his hand and looked at Li Chunfang who looked nervous. He couldn't help but sigh in his heart. He also thought of the reason why Li Chunfang was nervous, which might be because of what he had just said.

Zhu Zaigui thought to himself that it was really not easy to be the supreme ruler. No wonder the ancients used the phrase "a lonely man" to describe the monarch.

Zhu Zaigui withdrew his thoughts and was too lazy to explain anything to Li Chunfang.

Because Zhu Zaigui also knew that the more you explain some things, the worse they will become, so it is better to just move on and talk about other things.

Zhu Zaigui said: "Mr. Li came to express his gratitude today, and I accepted it on behalf of Your Majesty. Since Mr. Li is the first minister of the cabinet, he must change his mindset and do his duty well. He should not only focus on his own side like he did when he was the second minister."

When Li Chunfang heard what Zhu Zaigui said, he also bowed quickly and said, "Your Highness, your teaching is very true. I will immediately change my mindset and actively adapt to the job of the cabinet's chief minister."

Zhu Zaigui hummed, then looked at Li Chunfang and said, "The Jiangnan case has now come to an end. Xu Fan, the son of Xu Ge Lao, provided a lot of testimony and evidence. Zhang Juzheng and Hai Rui also found a lot of related issues and other cases related to the case in Jiangnan."

"These were originally supposed to be handled by the Ministry of Justice, but this matter involves many things, and there is also the issue of the former Prime Minister Xu's family. The Ministry of Justice alone cannot make the decision. Now the cabinet is under your charge, so after much thought, I think it is safest to hand this matter over to you."

Although Li Chunfang was mentally prepared, he still couldn't help but feel a tightness in his heart when he heard that he was the one who would be in charge of this matter.

However, Li Chunfang soon adjusted his attitude. After all, he was a new official.

Since he is a new official, he must have some new ideas. Otherwise, why would he be the Prime Minister of the Cabinet? He should just go home and farm!

Li Chunfang bowed respectfully to Zhu Zaigui and said, "I obey your order."

Zhu Zaigui looked at Li Chunfang's attitude with satisfaction again. He was worthy of being the chief minister of the cabinet, sandwiched between Xu Jie and Gao Gong in the original history.

It can not only support Xu Jie, but also press down Gao Gong for several years.

In terms of political ability and operation, his means and abilities are second to none among the prime ministers throughout the Ming Dynasty.

It’s a pity that in the original history, Li Chunfang had neither the fame of Xu Jie nor the favor of Gao Gong.

Therefore, during the few years when he served as Prime Minister, even if he was willing to do something, it would be difficult for him to be as outstanding as Gao Gong and Zhang Juzheng later.

But now it is different. Now he can get the trust and support of Zhu Zaigui. Therefore, after succeeding Xu Jie as the chief minister of the cabinet, Li Chunfang will definitely be able to show a different political style and leave a strong mark in his political career.

Zhu Zaigui put down the teacup in his hand and took out a memorial from the table in front of him: "Mr. Li, please take a look at this first, so that you won't blame me for not reminding you in advance of the difficulty of your work."

Li Chunfang stood up respectfully and walked to Zhu Zaigui, taking the memorial handed to him by Zhu Zaigui with both hands. He unfolded it and read the contents, and couldn't help but gasp!
He had already had some mental expectations, but when he saw that this memorial involved groups of people and numbers, as well as their previous relationships, and what they had done in Jiangnan and other places.

Li Chunfang couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat.

These are really too many, comparable to the four major cases in the Hongwu period. If all of them were handled, one-fifth of the officials in the Ming Dynasty would be lost!

"These."

Li Chunfang looked up at Zhu Zaigui nervously, and her throat couldn't help but become dry.

Zhu Zaiqi did not tell Li Chunfang about his solution at this time. He first asked Li Chunfang, "Mr. Li, how do you think we should deal with it?"

Li Chunfang wiped his sweat nervously, and then said: "According to the Ming Dynasty Law, those who embezzle more than 100 taels of silver shall be beheaded, their property shall be confiscated, and their family members shall be exiled."

Zhu Zaigui chuckled, "Mr. Li, you are joking. This is not the first time I have supervised the country and dealt with such things. Do you really think that the Great Ming Law can solve all problems?" "Moreover, Mr. Li should also know that the Great Ming Law has not been revised in accordance with actual needs for more than 200 years. The problems that could be handled according to the Great Ming Law during the Hongwu Dynasty may not be able to be handled in the same way now."

"Even during the Hongwu Dynasty, Emperor Taizu never followed the laws and regulations of the Great Ming Code to punish offenders."

"So, Mr. Li, please don't use such empty words to fool me."

Zhu Zaigui's words made Li Chunfang very embarrassed.

He didn't expect that Zhu Zaigui would be so straightforward in their first conversation with him after he became the Prime Minister.

Zhu Zaigui looked at the embarrassed Li Chunfang and changed the subject again, "Although the Great Ming Code is sometimes not applicable to current events, it is better to have it than not. In the next period of time, if Mr. Li is willing to set a precedent for the times, I may give you the task of revising the Great Ming Code to meet actual needs."

"But now, Mr. Li has to think about how to deal with the people and problems involved in the Jiangnan case. This is Mr. Li's first big test after becoming the Prime Minister!"

Li Chunfang's heart was startled. He looked up at Zhu Zaigui's expression, which was hard to tell whether he was happy or angry, and asked carefully, "What does your highness mean?"

Zhu Zaigui smiled slightly and looked at Li Chunfang who was walking up. He stood up and walked down from the dragon chair. He came to the front of the palace and looked at the scenery in the distance. He continued, "I think that we don't need to kill so many people in this Jiangnan case. Of course, we can't let them go easily and let them think that the court is weak and dare not do anything to them."

"So... although Confucius said: 'The law cannot hold everyone responsible,' that was based on special circumstances. If their problem cannot be held responsible for everyone, then this matter will have a very bad and far-reaching impact on the future of the Ming Dynasty."

"Therefore, I suggest that except for the main culprits who committed the most heinous crimes, who should be sentenced to death as a warning to others, the rest of the accomplices and their families should not be sentenced to death. They should be given a chance to atone for their sins while alive."

Li Chunfang followed behind Zhu Zaigui, and after hearing what Zhu Zaigui said, he immediately bowed and said, "Your Highness is kind and benevolent, which is a blessing to the country!"

Zhu Zaiqi turned around and looked at Li Chunfang behind him. He couldn't help but chuckle, "Mr. Li, you are really embarrassing me by saying that. I am just soft-hearted and don't want to kill anyone."

Li Chunfang listened to Zhu Zaigui's words again, and couldn't help complaining in his heart, aren't there enough officials who were secretly killed by Chen Hong during this period? Almost one third of the officials in the capital have been reduced!

If there were not enough talents accumulated through the imperial examinations, officials could be replenished quickly.

It is estimated that the number of officials in the capital at this moment is just like that in the Hongwu Dynasty, and manpower is always tight.

Zhu Zaigui said: "Now that Mobei is peaceful, the imperial court has regained control of the Hetao and Hexi Corridor and has re-established the Hami Guard. So I think these accomplices in the Jiangnan case and their families can move to another place to settle down, so that they will not continue to stay in Jiangnan and be stoned to death by the angry people of Jiangnan with rotten eggs."

Li Chunfang was slightly stunned when he heard this. Would those unruly people dare to do this? They were just ordinary people who were short-sighted and bullied the weak and feared the strong. If the court did not deal with those Jiangnan clans, even if they were given a hundred courage, few people would dare to rush to the homes of those who had bullied them for hundreds of years and generations and throw a stone at them!
But now Zhu Zaigui said that he would consider these Jiangnan noble families who had committed crimes. He is truly kind-hearted!
Li Chunfang asked cautiously again, uncertainly: "Your Highness, do you want to exile all these accomplices and their family members?"

Zhu Zaigui corrected him, "Mr. Li, this is wrong. I didn't say I wanted to exile them. I was just worried about their safety if they continued to stay in Jiangnan, so I thought of settling them in Hetao in the northwest, Liaodong in the northeast, and Hami in the west."

"Let them clean up their act and start anew there. Let them continue to contribute to the Ming Dynasty, use what they have learned to practice the teachings of Confucius and Mencius that there is no discrimination in education, and help the people in remote areas solve their problems in studying. This can be regarded as atonement for their previous sins."

When Li Chunfang heard this, his eyes suddenly widened.

If this were to happen, it would be more painful than killing them all!
Northwest, Northeast, Hami, these places sound so damn good!
Li Chunfang said nervously, "Your Highness' suggestion is very good, but I am worried that this move may cause fierce opposition from the Jiangnan gentry. They are all deeply rooted in Jiangnan, and a single move could affect the entire body."

Zhu Zaigui laughed indifferently, "That's easy, just move them all away."

Li Chunfang sucked in a breath of cold air. He never expected Zhu Zaigui to be so cruel!

If this were to happen, there would be no chance of any influential big family emerging in Jiangnan in the next hundred years at least.

It can even be said that Jiangnan will be silent for at least a hundred years from now on!
Li Chunfang said excitedly: "Your Highness, have you relocated too many people? What if they gather together and cause chaos in those places? What should we do?"

Zhu Zaigui smiled again and said, "This is easy to do. Break them all up. No more than five people from the same family can stay in one place. The old and the young, as long as they can read, must be separated. Send them to where the Ming Dynasty needs them most. They will guard the border and open up wasteland for the Ming Dynasty, educate the people, and report to the local garrison regularly. They must write a work report on their teaching process in the border areas. If they don't comply, they will be punished with a cane at the lightest, or sent to Mobei to build roads at the worst! There is an extremely short supply of workers for road construction in Mobei right now. The foreigners and Qiang people captured by Anda are not enough."

When Li Chunfang heard that these people were going to be sent to Mobei to build roads, his heart trembled even more.

The super project that the imperial court is most concerned about now is the Mobei hardened road project in cooperation with Anda.

In order to realize this project, the imperial court also established the Ming Peripheral Development Bank to provide loans and financial support to the Tatars.

But having funds is far from enough. After all, building roads requires people. So in recent years, all the people and criminals looted from the Western Regions and other places by the Northwest or Alda were sent to Mobei to build roads.

Moreover, according to data collected by the Ministry of Industry and the Ministry of War, the death rate and difficulty of building this road were far beyond imagination.

It can be said that even when Qin Shihuang built the Great Wall or Emperor Yang of Sui built the Grand Canal, the death rate could not match that of building this road. It is simply the ultimate dead end with a zero chance of survival!

But for the court’s future strategy, this road must be built no matter how difficult it is!
Therefore, if these members of the Jiangnan family who were relocated for crimes were sent to Mobei to build roads, it would be better to kill them from the beginning, which would be more convenient!

But unfortunately, the human resources of the court are extremely tight now, and the court today cannot, like in the Qin, Han, Sui and Tang dynasties, easily mobilize tens of millions of people to invest in an unprecedented large project.

Therefore, when the imperial court dealt with domestic prisoners and foreign prisoners of war, except for those who committed heinous crimes and the ringleaders, the rest were almost all sent to Mobei or other places with equally difficult conditions to build roads or carry out other important projects.

Now Zhu Zaigui said that he would send the disobedient members of the Jiangnan families to Mobei to build roads. This is simply to dig up the roots of the big families in Jiangnan!

But he wants to be the executor. Wouldn't he be hated to death by those people in Jiangnan who have vested interests?

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