Guangzong Yaoming

Chapter 216 Reward with Heart
After becoming the "Assistant Prime Minister", Wang Xijue eventually "returned" to Zhang Juzheng's arms.

Zhu Changluo didn't think for long and nodded readily: "Yuan Yu has requested, I will approve it!"

Zhang Juzheng had six sons. The eldest son had died; the second son was the runner-up in the fifth year of Wanli, and was now exiled to Guangdong; the third son was the top scholar in the eighth year of Wanli, and was stripped of his official title and became a commoner; the fourth and fifth sons had their official positions taken away by themselves, and are now commoners; the youngest son was still young when Zhang Juzheng died, and had never been an official, so he did not need special amnesty.

Now, Wang Xijue hopes to use the pardon of Zhang Juzheng's sons as a clarion call for the administration of the Administrative Council after the third year of Taichang.

But whether it was Zhao Zhigao's crime of corruption of "one million taels" or the pardon of Zhang Juzheng's sons, it would be best for Zhu Yijun to handle it.

Inside the Cining Palace, Zhu Changluo only said: "Zhao Rumai is willing to admit that Zhejiang has embezzled millions of taels of silver and return the stolen money to the court."

Zhu Yijun couldn't speak, but his eyes were dull as he looked at his son.

"One million taels, father." Zhu Changluo said.

Zhu Yijun certainly knew what one million taels meant.

It would be great to have so much silver.

He just didn't know: How are you going to make Zhao Zhigao feel that I "also" pardoned him?
"Father? Is there any evidence that Lord Zhao can recognize? He is so loyal, he must be rewarded."

Zhu Yijun thought for a long time and began to make eye contact.

So the eunuchs in the palace carried him and followed his sight.

When he arrived at the Qianqing Palace, Zhu Yijun's eyes stopped on an empty space in the west warm pavilion.

After Zhu Changluo asked for a long time, he saw Zhu Yijun looking at Tian Yi.

"...I remember that there used to be a jar here, which contained all the calligraphy of the Emperor."

"…Father, is it a letter or a jar?"

Zhu Changluo thought it should be a piece of calligraphy, but after the screening process, Zhu Yijun's eyes indicated that it was a jar.

"...Look for it."

When Tian Yi found the jar, Zhu Yijun looked a little emotional. He seemed to be feeling sad that the jar was still there, and also sad about the days back then.

"Is this it?" Zhu Changluo asked.

Zhu Yijun simulated a nod with his eyes.

Zhu Changluo looked at the jar and wondered what story it had that would let Zhao Zhigao know that it was a reward from the retired emperor?

But he got what he wanted, so he told Tian Yi: "Send this jar to Lanxi County, Jinhua Prefecture, and give it to Zhao Zhigao as a reward."

Tian Yi: ???
If the emperor wanted to transport a porcelain jar, he had to find a way to transport it.

It's a long journey from Beijing to Lanxi County, Jinhua Prefecture.

The jar is on the way, and Liu Yuanlin and others are also on the way.

Of course they had to go to Lanxi to see if Zhao Zhigao could really walk with crutches and speak.

After witnessing a medical miracle, their hearts became even heavier.

Should he wait for the emperor to respond to Zhao Zhigao's self-admitted corruption of one million taels, or should he do something in advance?
Time passed day by day, and they couldn't wait any longer.

After September, there are only three months left.

How to collect autumn grain, how to write congratulatory memorials and memorials required by the Council of Administration, and how much taxes to pay all need to be determined so that the prefectures and counties can comply.

The Shen family really worked hard to sort out the donated land and people. They also remeasured the land that belonged to them tomorrow and recounted their own people. Then they calculated how much the Shen family should be exempted from, how much land tax they should pay, and how many people should pay labor service starting this year according to the rules. They submitted the calculations to the county government.

On the surface, of course, the prime minister who left the court in disgrace did not want to be held accountable for his mistakes, but what was the reality?

Finally, Shen Yikuan personally arranged and invited Xie Tingzan, the academic supervisor who had returned to Ningbo, to hold a literary gathering with people from all over Zhejiang.

At this time, the emperor also issued an edict to pardon Zhang Juzheng's surviving sons and summon them to the capital to express his gratitude.

Since it was a clear order, the news could certainly be transmitted from the six departments under the Inspection Institute.

A piece of news, of course, spreads faster than that tank.

It is no longer the time when the new emperor ascended the throne in the 28th year of Wanli, but the autumn of the 2nd year of Taichang. There is no cabinet in the central government, but one room and four courtyards have taken its place.

Countless officials and gentry in the world are worried about whether they will be safe after surrendering themselves.

Although they all knew that Shu Baiqing, the magistrate of Changxing, had swindled more than 270,000 taels, the emperor really did not blame him for being an "accomplice" in so many cases.

But there are many people who are not just ordinary people, there are many people whose hands are stained with blood.

We don’t know what Zhejiang is doing yet, as we are not aware of other places’ practices.

After Liu Yuanlin and others thought for a long time, they finally realized what Shen Yikuan's real tricks were.

"...They are forcing us to confess our guilt!" Chen Jingji clenched his fists. "They are taking on such a crime when they are innocent. Are they really going to put the money in their names and ask them to return it?"

"...We are asked to confess our crimes to His Majesty and leave a criminal record for His Majesty to use?"

Liu Yuanlin gritted his teeth: "Shu Baiqing's example!"

This is what Shu Baiqing, the magistrate of Changxing, did, except that he also exposed his crimes to the people. As a result, he showed off his power to so many gentry and earned a reputation as an honest official.

"But even if we want to follow his example, where can we find so much cash in such a hurry? Do we have to sell something in a hurry now?"

Liu Yuanlin closed his eyes again in some pain: "A lot can be preserved..."

Yes, it is said to be retained, unless there is not that much cash left, and it is recorded in the account first and then paid off slowly within three years.

However, within three years, the education, water conservancy, and road and bridge matters that needed to be submitted had to be completed.

The new Inspection Yuan will certainly send special censors to inspect these matters, just like it did this year when it sent censors to supervise academic records.

"...Can you believe what Xie Yueke said?"

"…What you said in front of Lord Longjiang must be counted, right?"

It was really too late for them. It was almost October and the Imperial College examination had to have results. The emperor required this year's first batch of Imperial College students to enroll within the year.

The Imperial College examination was related to the assessment of the gentry.

At this time, the jar that the Supreme Emperor rewarded to Zhao Zhigao and the Emperor's statement had not arrived yet, but the previous news had arrived.

Li Zhi was recruited as a scholar of Taichang Temple, and Taichang Temple wanted to recruit more great scholars from the opposition to study the great knowledge.

Wang Keshou, the deputy governor of Zhejiang Province, was a disciple of Li Zhi. Upon hearing the news, he praised the emperor for his wisdom and made a clear statement on the selection of students this year: be impartial and promote talents for the country.

"I heard that there will be another competition in the Beijing camp next month. After the results are out, the standard-bearers of the left governors of each prefecture will be dispatched to various places."

"...The Left Commander-in-Chief of the Left Army has been relocated to Yangzhou?"

The Left General of the Left Army is Wang Chengxun, the Earl of Xinjian, who is also the commander-in-chief of the Cao Army. Now he has an additional 3,000 standard bearers.

Moving south from Huai'an to Yangzhou...it is of course closer to the five prefectures of Suzhou, Songjiang, Changzhou, Jiaxing and Lake Suzhou and Zhejiang.

"...After all these years, let's trust you two again. After all, you have been so kind to me in the past."

Zhejiang Provincial Surveillance Commissioner Tang Rizhao could not bear it any longer and made a proposal.

Ningbo, Taizhou, Wenzhou, Jinhua, Shaoxing... The autumn crops in many prefectures and counties are almost harvested, and taxes will start to be collected next month.

On October 11, two eunuchs and two royal guards who had come specially from Beijing arrived at the Zhao family in Lanxi County.

There are two wills.

One is that the retired emperor was reminded of someone by the sight of the object, so he specially gave the emperor a porcelain jar that he had used in the past.

First, the emperor heard that the old prime minister had recovered a little from his illness, so he specially bestowed an imperial calligraphy with the word "longevity" on it, hoping that he and the emperor emeritus would live long and healthy lives. He also allowed two sons of the family to enter the Imperial College, one middle school and one elementary school.

To outsiders who are not in the know, it seems that God is so gracious that he has not forgotten his old ministers.

Zhao Zhigao looked at the porcelain jar on the yellow silk cloth, his eyes were dazed for a moment, and then he couldn't help but burst into tears.

Because only he knew that this was indeed something that only the Supreme Emperor could give him. This thing...

It was June of the 22nd year of the Wanli reign. Wang Xijue had left the court in disgrace, and he had just been appointed Prime Minister again.

The military failure in Liaodong and the disaster at Xihua Gate caused great uproar among the court officials. Many officials from the six ministries, including Gu Xiancheng, and the censors collectively resigned to demand his resignation.

Zhao Zhigao had a habit that whenever he was impeached, he would personally go to Zhu Yijun to plead guilty and resign.

On that day, he went to Zhu Yijun to ask for an audience three times.

When Zhu Yijun saw him for the third time, he was so annoyed that he pointed to the porcelain jar in the western warm room of the Qianqing Palace, which had not yet been burned, and said, "Why do you always come here to cry about such trivial matters? I am very satisfied with you, and I will not grant your request. In the future, you can come if you want to. Cry all the way through this jar, and I will allow you to return home!"

Now Zhao Zhigao looked at the huge porcelain jar used to hold the scroll with tears in his eyes.

After all, he has been in power for so many years, of course he can't cry all over the place.

Therefore, he sat in the position of Prime Minister from the 22nd year of Wanli until the 28th year of Wanli.

The retired emperor did trust him, but during those years, wars were frequent and the dispute over the country's foundation became increasingly fierce, which really almost exhausted him.

It was during these years that he became disappointed with Zhu Yijun and his ministers.

When Zhao Zhigao saw the porcelain jar again, he had already returned home.

He knew that the emperor had really put in a lot of effort to find the object this time, and perhaps he even asked the retired emperor specifically about his memorial.

No matter how he pretended normally, Zhao Zhigao now stood up tremblingly and knelt toward the north, sobbing and saying: "This old minister kowtows to the Supreme Emperor, kowtows to His Majesty, this old minister..."

At that time, this jar represented that the emperor was too lazy to reconcile the conflicts among his subjects and only used Zhao Zhigao as a shield.

Now, this jar represents the emperor considering how to gain the loyalty of his subjects.

The situation in the Ming Dynasty had indeed changed. Although Zhao Zhigao was still unsure whether the Ming Dynasty could survive, as long as there was an emperor who cared about the state affairs and handled the relationship with his subjects attentively, it would be a good change after all.

The grace the Zhao family received made many officials in Zhejiang feel relieved.

They didn't know the story this jar represented, but since it was a large porcelain jar, and since it was a response to Zhao Zhigao's admission of guilt for embezzling one million taels of "stolen silver", it was certainly telling the people of Zhejiang: I have my own capacity!
When the Supreme Emperor issued an imperial decree to bestow grace, didn’t he mean that it was only the fault of the previous dynasty?
(End of this chapter)