Red Mansion: Seizing Jiangdong, starting with pirates

Chapter 64: Deceiving the Emperor

In the capital, after reading Wang Ziteng's memorial, Emperor Longqing's gloomy face showed a bit of joy.

"Good, good, Wang Qing really lived up to my expectations!"

"Come here, reward the Wang family..."

The words came to the tip of Emperor Longqing's tongue, but he stopped.

"Forget it. The treasury is empty. Let's wait until we return from suppressing the rebellion before rewarding each other."

Emperor Longqing sat back down and looked at another memorial.

"Three million shi of grain..."

Dong Chen explained the pros and cons in his memorial, saying that the root cause of the unrest in Shanxi was food shortage. There was a severe drought this year and the people had no harvest, which led to their rebellion.

As long as there is enough relief food to regain the hearts of the people, and as long as the city is defended with a strong defense, the rebel army will become chaotic over time, and the rebellion in Shanxi can be quelled without the need for large-scale warfare.

Emperor Longqing looked at the memorial with a frown on his face.

He found many suspicious points.

First, Dong Chen said that there was a severe drought in Shanxi, but the Shanxi officials did not submit any memorials regarding the drought.

Second, last year's harvest was good, and the new policy of equalizing the land tax was implemented, so the people should have enough food at home. Even if there was a real drought, the people should be able to survive, so why would they rebel?
Third, Dong Chen wanted 3 million dan of grain, but Emperor Longqing clearly remembered that during the Kangning period, Shanxi also suffered a severe drought, and Zhang Tingzheng, who was in charge of disaster relief at the time, only asked for 1.5 million dan to successfully stabilize the chaos in Shanxi. But now, Dong Chen wanted 3 million dan!

"Call the Minister of Revenue Cui Shu! And Zheng Jingshan."

Emperor Longqing preached.

Zheng Jingshan was the former governor of Shanxi, in charge of Shanxi's civil affairs and finances, including land, household registration, taxes, salaries and the entire expenditure of official funds. He was a de facto second-in-command figure in Shanxi.

After the Shanxi Rebellion broke out, Zheng Jingshan escaped by chance. Emperor Longqing originally wanted to sentence him to death, but because of the intercession of Grand Secretary Cheng, he was spared and only dismissed from his post as provincial governor.

The reason why Zheng Jingshan was summoned now was naturally to inquire about the actual situation in Shanxi.

Soon, the Minister of Revenue Cui Shu and Zheng Jingshan rushed over.

Emperor Longqing handed Dong Chen's memorial to the two men for review, and then asked seriously:

"Zheng Jingshan, tell me the truth. I want to ask you, what is the situation in Shanxi? Dong Chen said there is a severe drought in Shanxi. Is that true?"

Upon hearing this, Zheng Jingshan knelt on the ground, his body trembling, and he looked very frightened, but in fact he was quite calm inside.

For an official in his position, calmness is the most basic political quality.

Zheng Jingshan knew very well that he must not tell the emperor the truth.

Of course, there is a severe drought in Shanxi. Not a drop of rain has fallen since the beginning of spring.

As to why it was not reported.

What I mean is, if it is reported, how can the grain prices be driven up?

Who could have imagined that those unruly people would rebel just because they had no food to eat?
But none of this matters now. The important thing is to keep it a secret from the Emperor first.

Only by keeping it secret from the Emperor can everything be alright.

Otherwise, once he is exposed, even if he has ten heads it will not be enough to chop off!

In fact, if the emperor could have stepped out of the palace to take a look, he would have known the truth of the matter long ago. After all, the rebellious songs of the Jin thieves have now reached the mouths of children in the capital.

"The sky is dry and rainless, all because of the incompetent ruler who has blocked the sky. Heaven and earth are upside down, confusing fools and wise men, and thousands of miles of fertile land are barren..."

But so what, will the emperor leave the palace?

Zheng Jingshan knelt on the ground and said in fear and trepidation:

"I dare not conceal the slightest. This year, Shanxi has indeed had little rain and a slight drought has appeared. However, Governor Ding has quickly made plans to deal with it, sent people to pacify the affected areas, and used waterwheels and water trucks to save the crops, so the disaster was contained. It was only because the White Lotus rebels took the opportunity to cause chaos, destroyed the disaster relief work, confused the people, and brutally killed Governor Ding, which led to the chaos in Shanxi."

Emperor Longqing nodded upon hearing this. That’s right!

If Shanxi really had a severe drought as Dong Chen said, how could I not know anything about it?
Could it be that all the officials have joined forces to deceive me?

Emperor Longqing shook his head in his heart and dismissed this absurd idea. He looked at Cui Shu, the Minister of Finance, and asked:
"Dong Chen mentioned the disaster relief, saying that 3 million dan of grain was needed. But Minister Cui, I remember that during the Kangning period, only 1.5 million dan of grain was used for disaster relief in Shanxi. Is this true?"

When Cui Shu heard this, a drop of cold sweat flowed down his forehead.

It was indeed as Emperor Longqing said, during the Kangning period, Zhang Tingzheng only used 1.5 million shi of grain to provide disaster relief in Shanxi.

But how can this be compared with the Corning years?

During the Kangning period, 1.5 million shi of grain were shipped out of the capital, and 1.2 million shi were left when they arrived in Shanxi. Under the management of Zhang Tingzheng, after officials at all levels had shared their profits, the remaining grain was still enough for disaster relief.

And now...

Dong Chen is recognized by the entire government and the public as a practical talent, so his thinking is naturally extremely thorough.

The three million shi of grain is obviously a figure that takes into account losses along the way.

However, Cui Shu could not say these words openly.

"Your Majesty, it is true. I boldly guess that the extra 1.5 million shi of grain is probably given by Lord Dong out of pity for the people, in preparation for future needs."

Upon hearing this, Emperor Longqing snorted coldly and said angrily.

"What do you mean by pity for the people? I think it's the corrupt official Dong Chen who wants to embezzle these 1.5 million dan of grain. He claims to be honest, but is this how he treats my expectations? This is life-saving grain, and he has the heart to do it!"

Upon hearing this, Cui Shu and Zheng Jingshan lowered their heads and remained silent.

After a moment of silence, Emperor Longqing calmed down his anger and ordered:
"Come here, order Dong Chen to be recalled."

Upon hearing this, Cui Shu below could no longer sit still.

Emperor Longqing may dislike Dong Chen, but he cannot recall Dong Chen!
What if Dong Chen comes back and reveals everything under the emperor’s questioning?

No, Dong Chen can’t be allowed to come back.

Cui Shu immediately dissuaded him:
"Your Majesty, no! Although Dong Chen is suspected of embezzling disaster relief grain, you must not summon Dong Chen back to court at this time."

There was a flash of doubt in Emperor Longqing's eyes.

"Why not?"

Cui Shu's brain worked rapidly as he explained:
"Things have their priorities, and the situation in Shanxi is becoming increasingly serious, endangering the peace of the country. Since Dong Chen has a plan to deal with it, even if he is indeed corrupt, we should put down the rebellion first, and then settle his crimes after the rebellion is quelled."

"If we hastily summon Dong Chen back to the court at this moment, the situation in Shanxi will definitely deteriorate further, and the loss will outweigh the gain. Your Majesty, please think twice!"

After Cui Shu finished speaking, he knelt on the ground, looking like he was serving his country and the people.

To be honest, it was really difficult for Cui Shu to come up with such a complete set of logical reasons in such a short time.

Emperor Longqing couldn't help but think carefully about what Cui Shu said, and he actually felt that it made some sense.

……

Capital city, Zhang Mansion.

This mansion is not very big, with only two or three courtyards and a dozen rooms.

Living inside were the family of Zhang Yuan, a naval general of Fanlianghu.

Now, a team of imperial guards rushed over and surrounded the place!
A eunuch stepped forward and gave the order:

"Zhang Yuan has deceived the emperor and betrayed the country. All his assets will be confiscated and all his relatives will be arrested. No one should be left out!"

"Yes!"

The imperial guards received the order and rushed into Zhang's mansion.

Then, after a round of searching, they only caught some insignificant maids and servants; important figures, such as Zhang Yuan's mother, wife and children, were not caught at all.

The eunuch was furious when he saw this.

"He is indeed a traitor. He actually moved his family away in advance!"

(End of this chapter)