No matter how the emperor plans to deal with Xu Jie, outsiders will have to serve him well before his boots hit the ground.
Thanks to the return of bribes from officials, there are many vacant mansions in Beijing.
Two of them were taken over by the Ministry of Rites and used to house high-ranking officials who had arrived in Beijing in a hurry and had no place to live.
Xu Jie was suitable to be placed among them - Xu Jie originally had a private residence in the capital, but that residence was implicated in the case of the fifth year of Longqing's reign and was confiscated.
However, Xu Jie changed his bad habit of having fun, rejected Li Jin with righteous words, and took the initiative to place himself in the post station. He was no different from the officials who were usually called upon, and he behaved in a high-spirited and upright manner.
In short, in the end, Li Jin was brought to the inn by Xu Jie, leaving behind a small official from the Ministry of Etiquette to accompany him and two guards in royal robes to look after him, and then left straight away.
It is said that in every big event, be calm.
After Xu Jie settled down, he threw himself on the bed, slept peacefully, and took some rest.
The sky is blue and the sun is bright, and I sleep for an hour and a half.
If it weren't for the soft snoring and the rising and falling of his chest, the guards guarding the door would have thought that he had died.
It wasn't until dusk approached and the sky was getting dark that Xu Jie woke up quietly.
He stretched out comfortably, put on his clothes, and called out the door: "Here comes someone."
The clerk accompanying the Ministry of Rites came in from the next room: "What are your orders, Master Xu?"
The tiger in trouble is not something these petty officials can offend.
While Xu Jie was getting dressed, he said, "I have to eat late if I want to go out. Is there anything wrong with that?"
The young official said respectfully: "Master Xu's words are serious. What's wrong with that? I'll just show you the way."
You can have dinner, but you can't go alone.
Xu Jie naturally understood, and he didn't mind and nodded.
He dressed meticulously, used a bronze mirror to straighten his temples, and then stood up slowly: "Let's go, lead the way."
…
Imperial City, outside the Meridian Gate.
At ten o'clock in the afternoon, when the sky was getting dark, Zhang Juzheng slowly walked out of the imperial city.
As soon as he left the Meridian Gate, the butler You Qi immediately asked his servants to get off the sedan and wait for him.
Zhang Juzheng opened the curtain and got in.
A voice came from the sedan: "Is there something going on at home?"
Generally speaking, unless something happened at home, You Qi would not deliberately come to wait outside the Meridian Gate, and there would be no shortage of him to carry the sedan chair.
You Qi followed the sedan, walked slowly forward, and said in a low voice: "Sir, at noon, Wang Chonggu handed over a greeting card and wanted to see you soon."
After Zhang Juzheng heard this, he rubbed his brows tiredly in the sedan chair - it was another thing that he couldn't shirk.
Since becoming the chief assistant, there have been more and more matters to deal with.
The first is the examination method.
The problem of government officials in the imperial court is too serious. It has been tried for two seasons now, and problems have been exposed one after another.
Shen Shixing, a member of the official department, was always inferior to Gao Gong in terms of prestige and decision-making, and had to discuss the matter with Zhang Juzheng.
At the same time, in order to set an example, Zhang Juzheng took the initiative to petition the emperor to pass the examination on the compilation of "Mu Zong's Records".
As the saying goes, "Every project must be completed and then it will be effective." Zhang Juzheng set a plan for this matter despite all opinions.
Every month, the editors of each library need to complete the compilation of one year's events. At the end of the month, Zhang Siwei will revise and improve it, and then it will be handed over to Zhang Juzheng for deletion and polishing every six months.
The plan is to complete one year's compilation every month and three years' compilation every quarter, gradually accumulating in order to achieve ultimate success.
Of course, what is essential is monthly and semi-annual assessments.
This kind of thing is simply thankless.
I received a lot of scolding from the Ministry of Rites, but I was also tired.
But there was no other way. In the emperor's words, this was called "exemplary leadership", and he deeply believed in it.
In addition, there were the matters of Lianghuai and Yanzheng that the emperor forcibly threw at him.
It does not mean that after the emperor has set the general direction, the next two personnel appointments will be implemented in practice.
Just the change of one admiral, Cao Jiang and governor, involves changes in the official system.
After several rounds of consultations between the Ministry of Personnel, the Ministry of Revenue, and the Ministry of War, he rushed to come up with a result.
Even so, they forced Ge Shouli to get a position as Zuo Qiandu censor in the Metropolitan Procuratorate, causing Ge Shouli to make a fuss for several days.
In addition, there is the matter of Yanzheng Yamen.
Although there is a general consensus, there are still disputes on some key issues.
For example, neither the Ministry of Revenue nor the emperor wanted to let go of the printing rights of Shiobiki.
There is still room for discussion as to whether the Yanzheng Yamen is directly connected to Tianting, or whether it is responsible to the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Household Affairs.
Discussions are discussions, and things have to be pushed forward. Today, we just issued an order for Yin Shidan to come to Beijing to discuss this matter together.
These are just internal affairs.
Unexpectedly, there was another border dispute in Ji Liao.
Dong Fox is an old rival. During the Jiajing and Longqing periods, there was no lack of harassment from this person on the borders of the kingdoms and dynasties. Now in the Wanli year, it is no exception.
Tuman Khan and Qi Jiguang had a scene at the border, and it was impossible for the center not to pay attention to it.
Nowadays, fighting is returning to fighting, and prisoners must be exchanged.
In addition, they are afraid that these barbarians will fail to seek rewards and will cause large-scale border provocations.
Fighting is too expensive!
Judging from the current emperor's actions, time is on the side of the Ming Dynasty. It would not be a bad thing if the war could be postponed for a few years.
Everything was turbulent, and Wang Chonggu happened to come to Beijing again.
Zhang Juzheng only felt a little tired.
He opened the curtains of the carriage and ordered: "In two days' time, you can invite Wang Chonggu to come to the house for a dinner."
You Qi responded, indicating that he understood.
He paused and then said: "Master, there is one more thing."
A nasal sound came from inside the car.
You Qi said slowly: "Today Sun Yizheng came to deliver something to the house again. I took it upon myself to drive him away."
Zhang Juzheng replied absently: "This is because I failed the exam and was impeached by Li Zaiting. I'm afraid."
"You did the right thing, as it should be."
The emperor had told him clearly that if he needed money, he could use the internal funds.
Since the emperor has done this, he has no reason to get involved with stinky shit like Sun Yizheng.
He paused, then thought of something else, and asked, "What's new in the newspaper recently?"
The new newspaper said that it was sponsored by He Yongqing of the General Affairs Department, but the officials all knew who did it.
Just the circulation volume throughout Beizhili cannot be covered by the budget of the General Affairs Department.
Nowadays, the Xinbao has gradually become a system. In addition to publishing in Beizhili, some more will be printed, and together with the Dibao, they will be sent to local governments and inns for announcements.
In remote places, although the number is small and time-consuming, people seem to like to watch it.
There is even a local business of copying and selling new newspapers.
There was silence outside the sedan for a while, obviously reminiscing.
After a while, I heard You Qi's voice: "Since the last revision, it doubled in size and can be folded, the form has not changed again."
"The content is still the same, with interesting stories, current affairs, and enlightenment content, occasionally interspersed with some insights about the new school. It is said that there will be an 'experiment' after summer."
"Oh, by the way, the serialization of Journey to the West is over, and a new novel will be serialized in the next issue."
Zhang Juzheng nodded.
Ever since the emperor collected the manuscripts of Journey to the West and translated them into vernacular, Zhang Juzheng knew the audience of Xinbao.
Nowadays, the publication of Mathematics Enlightenment has confirmed his ideas.
He had seen it twice, but the crooked symbols really made him uninterested.
On the contrary, he knew something about You Qi's so-called "experiment".
The emperor had sex with him last year.
The rotten grass is the firefly... He is actually quite curious.
Zhang Juzheng casually asked some more serious questions, such as the price of rice in the market, the exemption of the nine-gate tax, whether there was any overt or covert policy, whether the children at home were studying well, and so on.
Halfway through the journey home, the sedan finally became quiet.
Zhang Juzheng took out the memorial from his sleeve and took advantage of this time to read through the memorial.
When you reach the position of first assistant, there is no rest time in the absolute sense.
Either he is dealing with political affairs, or he is on the way to deal with political affairs.
Now that Southern Zhili has just been bled by the emperor, there are many people who need to be appeased.
Whether it's a letter that goes well, or a job offer that sells well, it all needs to be dealt with.
Not to mention that there are still two municipal shipping companies waiting to be cashed in. Reports of concern about this matter from various places can be said to be floating into the cabinet like snowflakes.
There is opposition and resistance - it is said that establishing a shipping department is harmful and will only lead to banditry.
There are concerns and inquiries - especially whether it is only for tribute ships, or whether real civilian ships can also pass through, as well as questions about the tariffs and the number of troops stationed.
There was absolutely no time for Zhang Juzheng to be idle.
Zhang Juzheng just browsed through it like this, while the sedan chair swayed all the way.
After a while, he actually fell asleep.
You Qi heard the snoring in the sedan chair and did not dare to disturb it.
After bumping all the way to the door of the house, and getting off the sedan safely, You Qi woke up his master.
Zhang Juzheng woke up suddenly.
After coming back to his senses, he opened the sedan curtain and got out.
As soon as he stood up and walked back home, his eyes suddenly froze.
I saw an old man standing quietly beside the gate of Zhang's mansion, with his hands behind his back, looking up at the couplets at the door.
Zhang Juzheng took a closer look and his expression changed slightly.
He waved his hand to You Qi, who was trying to help him, to enter the house first.
He straightened his clothes, took a deep breath, and slowly walked forward.
Zhang Juzheng walked up behind the old man, bowed as a disciple, and in a respectful tone called out softly: "Teacher."
Waiting outside the house, he was his teacher, Xu Jie.
Xu Jie didn't look back, he only meant that he couldn't understand clearly: "When I was teaching at the Hanlin Academy, I was the only one who admired you, but I never expected that you would reach the position of chief minister."
"Why don't you set up a new door just for you?"
Zhang Juzheng was silent for a long time before he said: "Teacher, only the old houses in the countryside need to be represented. This is the capital, and a couplet is enough."
As soon as he finished speaking, Xu Jie slowly turned around.
The former chief assistant, with admiration and relief on his face, smiled and said: "Soft on the outside and strong on the inside. Not bad. He is indeed the first assistant."
He didn't care about Zhang Juzheng's subtle alienation and did not hesitate to praise him.
Xu Jie stretched out his hand to help Zhang Juzheng up and said casually: "I rushed to Beijing for the king's business. I just settled down and came to your place for dinner."
Zhang Juzheng looked at the teacher, understanding his situation in his heart, and his eyes couldn't help but become more complicated.
He took the initiative to bend down and support Xu Jie: "Teacher, I have already had dinner in the cabinet and have not made any preparations at home. I will take you to the restaurant to welcome you and wash away the dust."
Xu Jie was paused as he was about to enter the mansion.
He turned his head, took a deep look at Zhang Juzheng, and nodded slowly.
Xu Jie didn't expect that his disciple would be so disrespectful.
He came here on his own initiative, not wanting to help, and he didn't even want to take him into the house for fear of causing misunderstanding to outsiders.
What a good chief assistant.
Zhang Juzheng did not look at the teacher's expression, but helped the teacher to turn around and walk out.
The two of them had their own concerns and were not in the mood to eat delicacies. They randomly found a nearby restaurant, chose a private room facing the water and sat in.
Zhang Juzheng respectfully helped Xu Jie to sit down, as a disciple.
The latter also accepted it calmly, with nothing wrong with his expression.
Xu Jie opened the window and looked at the night outside and the river in the distance. He pretended to be careless and said, "The water in Tongzi River is clearer than when I left."
The Tongzi River is the Jinshui River. It comes out of Yuquan Mountain, has a diameter of Da Nei, leaves the capital, and flows into the Tonghui River.
It is a moat for internal and external traffic.
Zhang Juzheng sat opposite Xu Jie and said in a soft tone: "It's all thanks to your Majesty's good management. After the fire in Ciqing Palace last year, your Majesty took special care of these water systems."
He paused and said sincerely: "After all, it is a river inside and outside the traffic. Everyone is watching, so it is better to be clear."
Zhang Juzheng also has his own difficulties.
Being in the position of the first assistant, both inside and outside transportation, it is impossible to imitate Yan Song and abandon public service for personal reasons.
Xu Jie shook his head: "If we just swim in the algae for fish and enjoy it, it will be a waste of materials."
Zhang Juzheng patiently explained: "That's not the case. His Majesty said that for fear of changes in foreign returns, this water is really reliable."
This is because they are afraid that the palace will catch fire again, and then they will have to rely on this pool of water.
The two of them kept quarreling with each other.
Xu Jie kept testing and being aggressive, but failed to achieve anything. Zhang Juzheng spoke sincerely, but refused to give in.
The two were in a stalemate for a long time, and Xu Jie sighed in his heart.
Speaking of this, he also understood that Zhang Juzheng was unlikely to let go and really tried his best to rescue him.
This disciple may appear to be respectful, but in fact he is just like him, unsentimental and unsexy - willing to abandon most things for the sake of his so-called ambition.
Xu Jie had to change his plan.
He skipped the previous events and turned to today's interesting events: "On the way here, I met the Tatar envoy."
Zhang Juzheng also tacitly stopped talking about the previous topic and took up the conversation: "Well, recently the Tuman Khan came to invade the border again. He also came to Beijing to ask for rewards."
Calling it a reward is actually their euphemism.
In fact, it is appeasement silver.
It's no different from robbery. If you give money, you won't fight. If you don't, the army will invade the territory.
Xu Jie couldn't help but persuade: "The overall situation is more important. If a war really breaks out, millions of taels will have to be spilled."
Zhang Juzheng curled his lips and said: "The Ministry of War also means the same thing, but Qi Jiguang said in his memorial that the thieves are greedy and even a reward will not help."
Xu Jie smiled and said: "Then it depends on the cabinet's decision."
Zhang Juzheng was silent for a moment after hearing this.
After a while, he raised his head to look at his teacher and said seriously: "Since ancient times, military service and sacrifice have come from the emperor, and naturally it depends on the emperor's decision."
Zhang Juzheng's attitude towards the emperor was watertight.
Xu Jie smiled and said nothing, secretly put his hands into his sleeves and pinched himself to keep himself calm.
Seeing Zhang Juzheng's helpless appearance, he had to speak more clearly: "Speaking of the Emperor... I will meet the Emperor tomorrow. I don't know how talented and wise His Majesty is, so I feel really uneasy."
He sighed inwardly, Zhang Juzheng just didn't want to help him, so he wouldn't let him save himself, right?
If the emperor is not even willing to reveal his personality, there is no need to eat this meal.
Zhang Juzheng was silent again, and Xu Jie waited for his reply.
After a while, Zhang Juzheng raised his head, looked at Xu Jie, and said seriously: "Teacher, there is no need to be so worried, your majesty... is a benevolent king."
Xu Jie was stunned.
I totally didn't expect to hear the emperor's comments from Zhang Juzheng's mouth.
Renjun!?
The viciousness the co-author said about him is all fake, right? During the turmoil in Southern Zhili, hundreds of innocent officials and salt merchants were killed, so they were pretending not to know, right?
Zhang Juzheng ignored Xu Jie's look and said sincerely: "Since your Majesty ascended the throne, you have respected your teachers, served your two palaces with filial piety, treated your veterans well, and have a good appearance and honor. Naturally, you can be called a benevolent king."
Zhang Siwei talked about disrespect every day, and Tao Dalin fished in troubled waters, but the emperor did not lose the slightest bit of etiquette.
There was often disharmony between the two palaces. The emperor dealt with the two queens, reconciled them, and served them filially, which was obvious to all the foreign ministers.
Behaving like Gao Gong has a good end.
Why can't he be called a benevolent king? Even if outsiders don't recognize him, Zhang Juzheng at least recognizes him.
Xu Jie was thoughtful.
From this look, the emperor was still very tolerant to his ministers, otherwise Zhang Juzheng would not have protected the emperor like this.
If so, then he is really a political creature without his own preferences.
If you are useful, you will be treated kindly and with great honors; if you are useless, you will kill without blinking an eye.
but……
This is actually a good thing.
At least it means that the emperor will not have to kill himself to vent his anger just because of his anger!
In fact, his way of survival may also be among them.
Thinking of this, Xu Jie slowly took out a memorial from his sleeve.
He pushed the memorial in front of Zhang Juzheng and said seriously: "After I became an official, I lived in Nanjing for a long time. I have some experience in local governance, Japanese pirate invasions, and the sages and gentry in the countryside."
"Now that I have the opportunity to meet the Holy Spirit, I thought of writing a memorial for your Majesty's reference."
"Yuanfu, can you send me to Xiyuan for me?"
At this point, he no longer considered himself a teacher, but instead called him Yuan Fu.
Zhang Juzheng was startled.
He quickly stood up, respectfully bent down and stretched out his hand to take the memorial.
He held it upright and looked down.
I saw six big characters on the cover, "Chen Tianxia's Five Weaknesses".
Chapter completed!