In the first year of Wanli, June 22nd, there was a severe summer heat.
This is the hottest solar term, also known as the dog days.
There are floods and scorching heat in Huguang, and the situation is like a pot of boiling gruel.
It's different in the capital. It rained, but it didn't produce any water. Most of it was absorbed into the underground undercurrent, leaving only pure heat on the surface.
Fortunately, during the early morning court session in the Wenhua Palace, the courtiers would put some ice cubes in the palace to cool down, so that the courtiers would feel better - this was also a rare "extravagant" item that the emperor did not cut off.
After a year of various political affairs, the cabinet team headed by Zhang Juzheng slowly showed a rare centripetal force in the Ming Dynasty.
At least within the scope of the cabinet, six ministries and nine ministers, it is a moderate political consensus to tolerate each other for the sake of the country.
The court discussions were finally no longer as noisy as they used to be in the wet market, and the time for everyone to present facts and reason gradually increased.
The efficiency is naturally slightly higher.
Today's court discussion, first of all, based on the proposal of Wang Zongmu, the Governor of Water Transport, the eleven delivery stations of Huaiyang, Fengxu, etc. were eliminated.
Also, after the Zhaoling Mausoleum of Emperor Mu Zong was completed, there was a shortage of silver coins to reward Shangshu Zhu Heng and others, and the son of Yin Shilang Xiong Ruda entered the Imperial Academy to study.
Then, the cabinet asked the officials from the two palaces to check the money and grain of Zhaoling.
Xiyuan issued an edict, and it was stipulated that in the future, whenever major work is completed, the title should be checked, and it will always be a rule.
Subsequently, Gu Huan, the governor of the capital camp, and Wang Chonggu, the assistant minister of the cabinet, discussed five matters in the capital camp: ordering the generals to clarify their duties; fighting with the chariots to facilitate their operations; selecting and recruiting the troops for the actual camp; and storing general materials for preparation.
Ren envoy; it is said that the weapons are used for practical purposes.
The emperor listened to the affairs in the Wenhua Palace and immediately ordered the Ministry of War to discuss it in detail.
At noon, news came from Shanxi Province that the acting king Zhu Tingqi had passed away. The two palaces and the Holy One were grieved and sent Ninghou Zhugang to offer sacrifices.
According to the regulations, he stayed away from court for three days.
It's a pity that leaving the court is not a holiday. All ministries and departments must be on duty and perform the duties they deserve, and they cannot be discounted.
Especially as August approaches, two Beijing and one province have been piloting the exam for one year. As it comes to an end, all the government offices in Beizhili are working hard.
Of course, the direction of riveting force is also different.
What I did this year was so ugly, I was giving gifts everywhere to find connections.
Those who were still unwilling to give up and wanted to fight to the end, worked hard together in an attempt to find a critical moment to provide eye drops to the cabinet and the emperor.
Of course, the ones who exert the most energy are those who stand out this year.
We all know that the first thing a new official does when he takes office is to buy horse bones with a lot of money.
This is the stage of promotion! Who doesn’t want to seize it?
If the lower official is busy, the superior official will naturally be even busier.
Even the emperor, who has not yet taken charge of the government, cannot escape.
In the east side hall of Wenhua Hall, there was another duel between the emperor and his ministers.
Zhu Yijun sat upright and stretched out his hand in courtesy: "Yin Qing, please get up quickly. The summer heat is so hot and the boat and carriage are so tiring, Yin Qing has worked hard."
As he spoke, he began to look at the former cabinet minister in front of him, Yin Shidan.
This was a rare occasion for him to see a cabinet minister who was "unremarkable in appearance".
Previously, whether it was Zhang Juzheng, Gao Yi, Lu Tiaoyang, Yang Bo and others, they either had a steady and upright face with a Chinese character, or they had a refined and kind face with a long forehead and a wide forehead.
But the Yin Shi Danyin Ge Lao in front of me has prominent cheekbones and a somewhat flat nose, so he can only be considered average in appearance.
This was not the most important thing. The most difficult thing for him to understand was that Mr. Yin Ge had a medium-deep mark on his lower jaw. It seemed that the scar was scabbed but not healed.
Doesn’t it mean that even if you don’t have an official position, you won’t be able to achieve a high level?
Zhu Yijun took a few more glances secretly and curiously.
Yin Shidan was also sizing up the young emperor. Not to mention what he was thinking, he looked at his face frequently, so he naturally noticed it.
He did not shy away and said calmly: "Your Majesty, this injury to my jaw is a new injury after I joined the cabinet."
Zhu Yijun didn't feel embarrassed after his thoughts were revealed. Instead, he became more and more curious: "What's new?"
The mark doesn't look like it was dropped.
Yin Shidan bowed his hands in salute and lowered his head so that the emperor could not see his expression clearly: "Your Majesty, the injury on my jaw was caused by a fight with Ding Anbo when I was in the cabinet."
The words just fell.
"Ahem..."
Zhu Yijun couldn't hold it back. He choked on his saliva while suppressing his laughter.
It is indeed a high arch!
When Yin Shidan said this, Zhu Yijun remembered this.
After Gao Gong returned to the cabinet, he was extremely powerful and found reasons to expel anyone who could no longer be summoned.
Naturally, Yin Shidan was not spared.
When the matter came to a head, he scolded Gao Gong in the cabinet, "If you drive out Duke Chen, Duke Zhao, and Duke Li again, now you are driving me out."
After saying that, he beat him with all his strength.
Zhu Yijun originally thought that there was no fight, but now it seems that the fight was probably quite severe...
Cabinet brawl is really a combination of two familiar and unfamiliar phrases.
Zhu Yijun satisfied his desire to eat melon and pretended to clear his throat.
Revealing the episode just now.
He turned to talk about business: "I heard that Yin Qing went to Nanzhili before entering Beijing. Now he has been in Beijing for a few days. Do you think you have a plan in mind regarding the affairs of Yanzheng Yamen?"
Due to the efficiency of the Ming Dynasty, the matters decided with the cabinet last year are finally coming to fruition at the end of June.
Yin Shidan nodded and said confidently: "I have not only been to the Lianghuai Transfer Department, but also to the other salt transfer departments in Liangzhe, Changlu, Shandong, and Fujian. I have explored them one by one."
"The original intention of the Salt Section General Office established by the central government, the differences between the Ministry of Revenue and the inner court, and the entreaties of several transportation departments, I have all taken care of it."
Zhu Yijun glanced at Yin Shidan in surprise.
Why didn't he know that this former cabinet minister had such a practical side?
However, now that he has said it all, he obviously intends to show off his talent.
Zhu Yijun understood the atmosphere and there was no reason not to give him a chance.
He swallowed the words he had prepared and asked with a tone of asking for advice: "Why can Yin Qing teach me?"
Yin Shidan's body trembled.
Okay, okay, as the rumors say, this young emperor is deeply influenced by classics, treats people like a virtuous king.
Just this superficial act of treating the minister with courtesy was not in vain today.
Even if it was just superficial respect, he had never felt it from Mu Zong - when he was beaten, Mu Zong even tried to deflect Gao Gong.
Yin Shidan subconsciously straightened his back, raised his head and said, "Your Majesty, I don't dare to teach you, but I just have some superficial knowledge."
He paused and continued: "There are rumors that the central government established the Salt Administration Yamen in order to consolidate the authority of the Salt Administration and fill the tax revenue."
"Some of the ministries and bureaus who are familiar with it speculate that the central government intends to use this to coordinate the opening of the Chinese law and balance the north and the south."
Zhu Yijun listened carefully and nodded frequently.
It is because of the openness of the Ming Dynasty that people can freely discuss these things.
But I guess I'm on the right track.
At this time, Yin Shidan changed the topic: "However, I presume that the intention of your Majesty and the cabinet is more than that."
Zhu Yijun showed interest and looked at him encouragingly.
Yin Shidan confidently said: "The central government used the Kaizhong method to reprint the salt seal... but refused to continue to print it, and delegated the printing power to the Yanzheng Yamen and the various transportation departments."
"I think that Your Majesty intends to write a brocade article on Yan Yin."
Zhu Yijun did not comment.
He could tell that Mr. Yin Ge was somewhat arrogant and liked to show off.
No wonder, after all, he is a scholar who is as famous as the first seven sons and the second seven sons. It is normal for a scholar to have more serious flaws.
In this case, he naturally wants to support him and be backward compatible with the elderly.
He showed a look of surprise and immediately told the eunuch Wei Chao on the side: "Quick! Give Yin Qing a seat."
He turned around and urged Yin Shidan: "Yin Qing, continue."
Yin Shidan was very pleased with it, so he thanked him and Shi Shiran sat down.
Then he met the emperor's gaze and said word by word: "Does your Majesty...want to use the salt guide to plan the layout of the treasure banknotes?"
Zhu Yijun stood up immediately and said excitedly: "Yin Qing is indeed a great talent!"
This appearance is partly fake, but there is also some real surprise in it.
Just as Yin Shidan expected, he had this plan.
Credit currency is the way forward that the times must take.
It's a pity that Taizu's treasure money failed so completely. Credit currency without credit anchor is just waste paper.
And salt, as a hard commodity that is popular in the world, naturally has the qualification to serve as an anchor.
As long as each piece of salt currency can be exchanged for the corresponding amount of salt, the salt currency will be the prototype of the next generation of treasure banknotes - the name of treasure banknotes is terrible, and it will definitely have to be renamed by then.
But whether it is called salt currency or salt coupons, it is essentially a credit currency.
Currently we can only exchange for salt, but as long as one day this thing can be tax deductible, then it will no longer be limited to salt classes.
This is also a pilot to a certain extent.
He also wanted to directly issue credit currency and achieve it in one step, but now there are no silver mines and the reputation of precious banknotes.
If you really want to do this, you are afraid that the Ming Dynasty will not die quickly enough.
The current situation has advantages and disadvantages, but at least it can be freely adjusted - it is better than leaving the coinage rights to Spain or the private sector.
After the experience has matured, the mines in Japan will almost be opened. At that time, we will start to replace the old ones and issue credit currencies with anchors of gold and silver. This can be regarded as going hand in hand, and there will be no delay in both.
It is precisely because of this that the salt seal is related to the right to mint coins in the future. The inner court and the Ministry of Revenue each refused to let go and wanted to be responsible for printing the salt seal.
Sometimes I hate the Minister of Household Affairs, Wang Guoguang, for being too keen on these things.
When Yin Shidan heard the emperor's compliment, he felt as happy as drinking ice in summer.
He excitedly opened his mouth and said, "In this case, I will give you a detailed report to Your Majesty."
Zhu Yijun smiled and stretched out his hand: "Yin Qing, please speak."
This means negotiating terms and refusing to take up the position if the treatment is not good.
Zhu Yijun is also happy to see this link, which is a good atmosphere for political consultation.
Yin Shidan thought for a while, then simply stood up and walked to the center, where he stood where the monarch and his ministers were playing in harmony, the most harmonious position in the picture.
He bowed respectfully and said: "First, in order to prevent counterfeiting among the people, the salt seal should be replaced every five years, and the salt should be replaced uniformly, and expired salt seals should be abolished."
Since the emperor wants to use it as a treasure, the salt currency can only be anonymous.
If it is anonymous, we must prevent forgery.
Otherwise, if something goes wrong and the Yanzheng Yamen collapses, he will be blamed.
The rest of the methods don't matter - that's the craftsman's business, he doesn't need to think about it.
From an overall perspective, the top priority is to update and replace the past in a timely manner.
Zhu Yijun nodded, cast an earnest look, and motioned for him to continue.
This attitude is consent.
Yin Shidan maintained his saluting posture and did not get up: "Secondly, I was bold enough to give the right to sell Yantai to the Yanzheng Yamen alone."
"At that time, if there is a piece of salt that leads to no salt, I am willing to kill him!"
He was also frightened.
Baobao was issued unscrupulously, and the previous salt currency also caused disasters.
What if someone is drinking poison to quench their thirst this time and just make a fortune and be done with it, then what will happen to them?
If possible, he would not bring up something unpleasant when meeting the emperor for the first time.
However, since you accept this job, you have to consider the risks.
Only by holding it in his own hands, and giving as much salt as he can, can he get things done.
The matter was of great importance, just when Yin Shidan thought he would have to waste more words.
To his surprise, the emperor readily agreed: "This is the proper meaning of the question."
"The salt quotations printed by the central government every year will correspond to the number of salt courses. They are only sold by the Yanzheng Yamen. The central government will never issue salt quotations again."
In the initial stage, building confidence is the most important thing.
All other financial purposes have to take a back seat.
Yin Shidan breathed a sigh of relief.
The tone that followed became much more relaxed: "Thirdly, in Haibei, Sichuan, Yunnan and other places where salt is raised, the sky is high and the roads are far, so it is inconvenient to transport salt."
"Your Majesty, please allow me to produce salt on the spot."
Kaizhong Fana also supplies salt from Huaihe and Zhejiang provinces, and at most Shandong is added because water transportation is convenient.
As for further distances, you have to adapt to local conditions.
I am afraid that the emperor will give blind orders.
Zhu Yijun said nothing, nodded and said: "Yes."
The endowment of geographical resources is the most important thing that cannot be ignored nowadays. If the idea is too forward, it will be easier to do bad things.
Take Sichuan as an example. Due to the geographical conditions, we can only produce Ba salt locally. This has been the case for hundreds of years.
Even in his previous life, he was still called Ba Yan, or Yan Ba. It had become a habit, and it was not without reason.
Yin Shidan finished explaining his terms, or the conditions for taking office, in one breath, and everything went surprisingly smoothly, and his evaluation of the emperor was much higher.
Then I hesitated whether to ask the last question now.
Seeing that he was hesitant to speak, Zhu Yijun curled his lips and asked proactively: "What else do you want to say? Just speak frankly!"
Yin Shidan quickly shook his head: "Your Majesty, it's not that I have any concerns, but... there is one more thing that I need to ask your Majesty to clarify."
Zhu Yijun nodded: "But it doesn't matter."
Yin Shidan pondered for a long time, and after considering his words, he slowly said: "Your Majesty, when salt is produced in the Huaihe River, can it be adapted to local conditions?"
He can more or less guess that the current central government intends to split up Southern Zhili - at least, it will be downgraded to a province.
Otherwise, the Salt Administration Office would not have been specifically located in Shandong to suppress the Lianghuai Salt Administration Department.
I just don't know how hard he will use it.
Zhu Yijun turned his head and looked at Yin Shidan who spoke cautiously.
I couldn't help but click my tongue in my heart.
He is worthy of being a great scholar in Qiandiange, and his mind is really clear.
Since he was asked about this, he did not hide it and said bluntly: "Of course, we have to adapt to local conditions. The salt of the Huaihe River should be adapted to the Tianfu and Fengyang prefectures. Whether it is geography, water transportation, or Hui merchants,
Everyone has their own situation, you can take care of it yourself."
Administrative divisions, in addition to simple and crude map lines, economic differentiation is an indispensable part.
Yin Shidan understood this deeply and bowed silently in response.
Afterwards, the monarch and his ministers discussed matters such as the location of the Yamen, the number of personnel, operating expenses, etc.
These things are relatively unimportant. They are mainly necessary ways for the king and his ministers to understand each other.
After getting down to business, the atmosphere became relatively relaxed.
Speaking of Yin Shidan's lectures to the late emperor, Zhu Yijun also took the initiative to ask for some essentials from "Extensions of the University" and "Zhenguan Zhengyao".
When the atmosphere was intense, Yin Shidan also composed a poem on the spot and presented it to the emperor. The emperor was full of praise, saying that it was as elegant and tame as Qi and Lu, as tragic as Yan and Zhao, and as graceful as Wu and Yue.
Let Yin Shidan's old face bloom like a daisy.
It was a pity that the emperor did not live up to his expectations and also gave him a poem, which made him a little regretful.
It seems that the previous poem was not written by the emperor himself.
Just when the two were chatting happily.
Zhang Hong walked in from outside the east side hall of Wenhua Hall.
Yin Shi's sharp eyes saw that his hands were folded into his sleeves, and he knew that something important was going on.
After Zhang Hong came in, he stood directly beside the emperor without saying a word.
Yin Shidan understood immediately, stood up and left.
Zhu Yijun gave a few gentle words of encouragement and asked the eunuch Wei Chao, the eunuch to send him off.
It wasn't until Yin Shidan retreated that Zhu Yijun looked at Zhang Hong, stretched, stood up and said, "Tell me, what's the matter?"
Zhang Hong didn't report directly, so it wasn't an urgent matter.
As soon as he finished speaking, Zhang Hong knelt down respectfully and took out a memorandum of approval from his sleeve: "Your Majesty, this is the memorandum of the Ministry of Rites."
“The Ministry of Rites has said that ‘the laws established by our ancestors cannot be changed lightly’. Your Majesty, please think again.”
It sounds nice, but it actually means blocking it back.
Zhu Yijun was silent.
He didn't even pick up the memorial in Zhang Hong's hand.
He naturally knows the content.
This was discussed with the cabinet before, regarding matters such as the lifting of bans on clan business, the promotion of titles, etc.
These are all matters for Huguang, and the follow-up preparations - Huguang's matter naturally does not end with one killing. The clan has killed many officials and common people over the years. If the source is not solved, there will be countless Zhang Chus in the future.
city.
Take Chu Fan as an example.
Historically, in the thirty-second year of Wanli, Zhu Yunqian of the Chu vassal robbed twenty thousand taels of silver presented to the imperial court.
Zhao Kehuai, governor of Huguang, immediately arrested thirty-two suspects.
Then, on the fifth day of the ninth lunar month, more than 3,000 clan members broke into the governor's office carrying murderous weapons. They stripped the deputy envoys Zhou Yingzhi and Dou Zicheng, stripped them naked, and beat them obscenely.
And he beat the governor Zhao Kehuai to death on the spot!
Even after the officers and soldiers surrounded him, "all kinds of evil still besieged the Chief Secretary, trying to rob the treasury and loot the city."
The lawlessness has reached this point, which shows how arrogant the clan has become.
Therefore, Zhang Chucheng's case is not just about Zhang Chucheng, and the Huguang clan's problem involves more than just the Huguang clan.
More importantly, let the clan stop raising these weirdos.
After the imperial envoy went to Huguang, Zhu Yijun, Zhang Juzheng, Gao Yi and others in the cabinet had already discussed how to reorganize the clan afterwards.
It was precisely because he understood that restructuring the clan would easily offend some people's sensitive skin that Zhu Yijun sent poems to the first and second assistants to seek support.
I just didn't expect that I would now be stuck in the Ministry of Etiquette.
Are the laws of the ancestors immutable?
There are certainly many such people in the Ministry of Rites and the Zongren Mansion.
But more than that, I’m afraid it’s just because you want to oppose yourself, right?
It seems that Zhang Siwei has a lot of opinions about him... Zhu Yijun couldn't help but smile.
He looked at Zhang Hong and suddenly asked about something that couldn't be done with eight poles: "Did Jiang Keqian come back yesterday?"
Zhang Hong lowered his eyebrows and said, "I returned to Beijing last night."
Zhu Yijun thought thoughtfully: "He is a fast horse, so he must be faster. If he takes the inn normally, when will the news arrive in the capital?"
Zhang Hong thought for a while: "Shanxi is very close after all. We will probably have to wait for two or three days for the news to arrive."
Zhu Yijun said oh.
He took the memorial, glanced at it, and while still on the imperial desk, he ordered Zhang Hong: "Go and tell Mr. Yuan Fuhe, just say... let them recommend Zhang Siwei to the cabinet. I will meet this time."
Agreed."
Originally, the Ministry of Rites was not an important position, so there was no harm in letting Zhang Siwei stay for a while.
It's a pity that the clan is going to be disturbed now, and it won't work if the Ministry of Rites doesn't cooperate.
Those who are interested can read the book with the same theme and author (I haven’t read it, readers who have read it can tell me), but it’s just a little short of Sanjiang.
Chapter completed!