On the spacious official road, a group of more than 20 horsemen galloped quickly with their horses whipped and their whips raised.
The leader was a man with thick eyebrows and big eyes. He was about forty years old. He was obviously dressed as a scholar, but when he looked at him, he looked calm and intimidating.
The more than twenty riders behind him are also powerful troops in military uniforms with extraordinary momentum...
However, their group did not attract too much attention.
Although the world has been at peace for more than ten years, the tradition of Dayu's military parade has been maintained. The combat effectiveness of the Forbidden Army may not be as good as that of the founding period, but they are still capable warriors who have been trained for a long time.
There is no shortage of such mighty teachers at the feet of the Emperor.
When a group of people arrived at the North Gate of Luoyang, their uniforms immediately attracted the attention of the soldiers guarding the city, who sent soldiers to inquire about their identities.
The leading scholar did not show any arrogance, and said cheerfully on his horse: "I, Kou Zhun, the envoy of Qinghai Economic Strategy, have returned to the capital to report on his work under the orders of the prince."
He signed up for his number, and as soon as he rode behind him, he immediately dismounted and took out the token to prove Kou Zhun's true identity.
The status of the city guard is not high, but it is a position where he is well-informed. He knows all the princes and nobles by their faces. He has even seen the current emperor and the prince with his own eyes. However, he still can't help but feel too much about the name "Kou Zhun".
Glanced twice.
At that time, Brother Yeluxiu and Cao Bin teamed up to overthrow Tubo and formally incorporated Tubo into Dayu's inherent territory.
The grievances between Tubo and the Central Plains court have a history of hundreds of years. In the endless confrontation and consumption, the internal conflicts in Tubo have become increasingly intensified. The royal family is fighting with each other, and generals are fighting. More than ten factions are fighting each other, causing chaos for a hundred years.
Fifty years. During these one hundred and fifty years, countless factions and classes, large and small, were formed on the plateau due to wars.
It is easy to conquer by force, but it is not easy to make the remaining people on the plateau surrender.
Cao Bin and Brother Yeluxiu defeated the Tubo royal family and the great nobles. However, faced with the complicated situation, they could not kill them all and could only be gentle and appease them.
The climate on the plateau is harsh, the transportation of supplies is inconvenient, and the army is stationed for a long time, which costs a lot of money, so that many ministers in the DPRK have thought of giving up.
It was Luo Youdu who suppressed the matter and then dispatched capable people to the plateau and Qinghai to manage and pacify it.
Kou Zhun, who had already made a name for himself, volunteered to join Tibet.
Kou Zhun spent three years traveling across the plateau and Tibet, writing 250,000 words of his experiences, and another 30,000 words of a governance plan. He spent seven years building the Qing-Tang Business Road and the Ancient Tea-Horse Road.
Along the way, Daxing Station formulated a series of laws and regulations regarding the production, sales, trafficking, taxation, price, quality, and supervision of materials in the snow area, which greatly benefited the Tibetan people. In addition, he also used his free time to organize poetry and poetry meetings.
, and also asked Confucian scholars to study Confucian classics, encouraged young students, and promoted the academic style in the snow area. At the same time, he used thunderous means to deal with the powerful forces lurking in the dark, using both kindness and power to achieve great governance in Tibet.
In the past ten years, Kou Zhun's name has dominated the front page of the Di newspaper for a long time.
Even though the soldiers guarding the city had never left the capital, they had heard about Kou Zhun's reputation through various channels, confirmed his seal, and allowed Kou Zhun to enter the city with some respect.
Kou Zhun looked at the familiar yet unfamiliar streets around him and said: "Uncle Zhang, you go back home first and get to safety with my parents. I'll go to the East Palace first to see what happened..."
Kou Zhun had an extraordinary political sense and knew that there must be something big happening when Luo Kangrui, the crown prince of Yu, summoned him to the capital.
Kou Zhun walked along the Royal Street, passed through various notifications, and walked into the Middle East Palace, which is now the administrative center.
Since Dayu held its 50th anniversary celebration, as the founding emperor of the Dayu Dynasty, Luo Youdu gradually transferred his power to the East Palace.
Trivial matters were decided by the prince, and major matters did not require special reporting. They could be discussed with all the ministers and ministers. Only the transfer of officials of third rank or above required Luo Youdu's permission.
It can be said that the current crown prince Luo Kangrui already controls 80% of the power of the Dayu court.
The place where Luo Kangrui met Kou Zhun was not the main hall of the East Palace, but the dining hall. The wine, food and cold dishes were ready, and they were waiting for Kou Zhun to arrive and start cooking.
After ten years of absence, Kou Zhun looked at his childhood playmate who already had a certain magnanimity in front of him, and said respectfully: "I have met His Highness the Crown Prince!"
Luo Kangrui laughed and stepped forward, put his hands on Kou Zhun's shoulders and said: "You have been this way since you were a child. I specifically removed everyone, but you are still so restrained... Forget it, don't force it, you agree. Your father has the same stubborn temper. Hey, as my father said, if everyone in the temple is like you and his son, he will have to live a few years shorter. But if a court does not have people like you and your son, It’s like missing the cornerstone to stand on.”
Such praise is not unimportant.
Kou Zhun was also moved in his heart. As a human minister, being able to meet two generations of wise masters in a row was a blessing earned through several lifetimes of practice.
The two drank a few drinks and exchanged pleasantries.
Luo Kangrui put down the cup in his hand and said, "Pingzhong, have you ever heard of collusion between Quanzhou officials and businessmen?"
Kou Zhun knew that business was coming, and said: "I read it in the Di newspaper. Fan Zhongyan is indeed a good person in your Majesty's eyes. I am in Qinghai, and I am fascinated by him."
Qinghai and Quanzhou are thousands of miles away, but this incident caused a sensation all over the world. Kou Zhun specially asked someone to collect all the newspapers and manuscripts about this incident and study it in detail.
The core figure who exposed the corruption in Quanzhou Maritime Trade was Fan Zhongyan.
The biggest difference between the imperial examination system of Dayu and the Song and Ming Dynasties was that they dared to let Jinshi go out to serve as officials, instead of keeping them in the capital to serve as clerks to pass the qualifications.
As the number one scholar appointed by Luo Youdu, Fan Zhongyan only stayed in the capital for three months before he was assigned to Jiangnan as an official and trained as the magistrate of a small eighth-grade county.
With his extraordinary political talent, Fan Zhongyan achieved great results in just a few years, was promoted successively, and was transferred to the Quanzhou Shipping Department.
Quanzhou has a unique geographical location and has become the largest commercial port in the world, with hundreds of thousands of merchant ships and cargo ships passing by every day.
It has long been a recognized fact that the Southeast is the most profitable country for shipping merchants and that the shipping market is the most profitable.
Quanzhou is thousands of miles away from the capital and has huge interests. How to fight corruption is a top priority. Over the past decades, the court has also arrested many corrupt officials...
Fan Zhongyan relied on his extraordinary talent and courage to launch a large-scale purge in Quanzhou City, and even implicated the magistrate of Quanzhou, becoming the largest corruption case since the founding of the Yu Dynasty.
It is indeed remarkable that Fan Zhongyan, a seventh-rank official, could cause such a big disturbance in Quanzhou.
In addition to his outstanding political achievements, Fan Zhongyan was also a good writer, including excellent poems and prose. Kou Zhun had been friends with him for a long time.
Luo Kangrui shook his head and said: "Pingzhong only knows one, but not the other...wait for me."
As he spoke, he walked into the back room of the side hall. When he came out, he had a thick wooden box and an extra file in his hand. After giving the wooden box to Kou, he returned to his seat and ate the delicious food in front of him.
Kou Zhun carefully opened the wooden box and found stacks of files inside, all about the collusion between Quanzhou officials and businessmen.
Kou Zhun looked at each one carefully, and his expression became more and more serious.
After reading the dossier once, Kou Zhun frowned and read it again word for word.
Luo Kangrui did not rush him and just continued to eat and drink on his own.
After a long while, Kou Zhun put down the file in his hand, took a long breath and said: "I didn't expect that the involvement was so wide, and Quanzhou has been corrupted to this extent."
After reading the files, Kou Zhun realized that Fan Zhongyan was even more outstanding and more difficult than he thought. Such an outstanding person actually won the title of the most incompetent number one scholar.
It turns out that Fan Zhongyan was an honest man. After he joined the Quanzhou Shipping Department, he was not moved by fame, fortune and wealth. He acted impartially and blocked people's financial paths, which made him a thorn in the side of others.
Exclusion, belittling, and malicious targeting all came to Fan Zhongyan.
Manpower is limited, and no matter how capable Fan Zhongyan is, if he doesn't listen to his superiors and doesn't obey his subordinates, he won't be able to accomplish anything.
Historically, Fan Zhongyan lost his father when he was young. Because his mother, Mrs. Xie, remarried to the Zhu family of Changshan, he changed his name to Zhu Shuo. He studied hard and passed the exam. After going through many hardships, he became a Jinshi from a humble scholar, and gradually became a famous prime minister through the ages. But today, Fan Zhongyan's life is smooth sailing. , he was highly regarded by the emperor at an early age, grew up in the capital with no worries about food and clothing, and became the top scholar in high school. His talents were far better than those of Fan Zhongyan at the same time in history, but his temperament and experience in the city and his prudent attitude towards others were far inferior to those of Fan Zhongyan in history.
Fan Zhongyan, who was sailing smoothly, entered the darkest moment of his life in Quanzhou Shipping Company, and even became a joke.
Faced with all kinds of criticism, Fan Zhongyan did not let the pressure collapse. Instead, he completed the most important transformation in his life. He pretended to be decadent, secretly made like-minded partners, investigated the inside story of the shipping company, peeled off the cocoons, and mastered the corruption. evidence.
The Quanzhou maritime merchants were forced to make a fool of themselves and sent people to attack and kill Fan Zhongyan, destroying his body and destroying all traces of it.
In the end, Tianwei was so angry that Luo Youdu personally ordered the Nanhai Navy Commander to take charge and cleanse the Quanzhou shopping mall officialdom.
This matter is so serious and serious that many details are not disclosed to outsiders.
Luo Kangrui said: "In fact, not only in Quanzhou, but also in Luoyang now, this trend is growing under the emperor's feet. This is also the reason why I urgently called you here..."
He said and handed another file in his hand to Kou Zhun.
Kou Zhun took a closer look and found that the first case actually involved the sale of a little girl named Liu E six years ago.
Liu E was mortgaged to Ren Yazi by his father's friend. Seeing that Liu E was a thin little girl, the other party took it lightly and let her escape and report to the official.
The Kaifeng Prefecture cracked the Renyazi Group in one fell swoop.
This matter should have ended, but it did not. Since the Dayu court shifted its focus to Luoyang, the status of Kaifeng Mansion has plummeted. But compared to other government offices in other places, Kaifeng Mansion has a different meaning.
The governor of Kaifeng Prefecture is called Pan Yanjiang. He has inherited the will of Luo Youdu and Kou Xiang very well and continues the fair and selfless style of Kaifeng Prefecture.
When Pan Yanjiang was making the final decision, he sensitively felt that the case was too smooth, as if the Renyazi Group had come to his door. He suppressed the matter and investigated secretly, and he found out the clues: there was a group of people who specifically sold beauty. Outstanding boys and girls cultivate their skills for the enjoyment of dignitaries, thereby winning people's hearts.
The more Pan Yanjiang investigated, the more frightened he became, and finally settled on Ma Xinhao, the salt and iron transporter.
This Jinshi who lived in the 10th year of Yongjing committed suicide at home in fear of crime...
"The law of heaven cannot tolerate it! His crime deserves to be punished!"
Kou Zhun's eyes flashed with anger, and he clapped his hands and stood up.
Luo Kangrui asked: "These two pieces of eucalyptus are not related or related. But I think they can be looked at together. What does Ping Zhong think?"
Kou Zhun said with anger in his eyes: "I also feel from this that these two big eucalyptus have no relationship on the surface, but they both have the same situation. The businessman..."
Luo Kangrui said sternly: "Yes, my father did not emphasize agriculture and suppress business like all previous dynasties. Instead, he gave privileges to businessmen, encouraged business, and benefited the world. This has achieved the goal of enriching the people and strengthening the country. At the same time, the businessmen also sailed to sea to contribute to our country. He has made outstanding contributions to the promotion and dissemination of culture. Today, countries as far away as England are using my Dayu Tongbao. In this regard, businessmen have made an indispensable contribution. This shows the wisdom of my father's move."
"But there is no permanent solution, just like the land annexation that troubled previous generations. Our dynasty has a vast territory and both agriculture and commerce, so land annexation has not happened. However, the trade of these forty or fifty years has created a large number of people. The wealthy merchants used their money to use various means to deceive the court officials in pursuit of fame and fortune..."
"Take Fan Zhongyan as an example. This person was a talented person as prime minister and assistant minister, but because he blocked their way of making money, he became the most incompetent number one scholar."
Anger flashed in Luo Kangrui's eyes: "Ping Zhong, you must know that this is not a slander, but a fact. A powerful person like Fan Zhongyan can hardly do anything under their interference. On the contrary, a stupid person can just follow their wishes. They Just provide money and effort to help a poor state and county get out of poverty and become rich in just a few years, and then get promoted based on merit. Is it okay to let it continue to develop?"
"For the sake of the overall situation, my father was very tolerant of them, but now they have crossed the line."
"Gu... let them know that everyone in this world has the surname Luo!"
When Luo Kangrui said this, he stood up suddenly.
Kou Zhun looked at the Prince of Dayu in front of him, and for a moment he had a feeling that it overlapped with the Emperor of Dayu in his memory. He stood up without any hesitation and said, "What does the prince need me to do?"
Luo Kangrui said word by word: "Ma Xinhao committed suicide at home out of fear of crime. Judging from the clues, this person is not the real mastermind, and there must be someone behind him. Killing chickens to scare monkeys has no meaning in Gu's view. Gu wants to kill tigers and wolves to eradicate them. The biggest worms in the temple, along with their henchmen and out-of-bounds businessmen, will be wiped out in one fell swoop."
Kou Zhun was originally a man who was eager for justice, so his blood boiled when he heard this, and he said: "I am willing to help the prince..."
He paused and said, "I just don't know what your Majesty's attitude is?"
Luo Kangrui said with a gentle smile: "Ping Zhong really thinks that my father is getting old? He doesn't know anything about the disasters caused by the merchants? He is becoming more and more evil as he gets older. It's not that he doesn't know many things, but it's not convenient for him to take action."
Kou Zhun was relieved after hearing this. Luo Youdu was the emperor, and his attitude was the direction of the trend. The sudden wealth of businessmen often made civil and military officials all over the world jealous. If he really wanted him to attack the businessmen personally, the civil and military officials in the temple would have to beat up the fallen dogs.
Businessmen who cross the border can be killed, but if they are really beaten to death, the greatest harm will be done to the court.
Let the prince cause trouble, and then he will end it...
Kou Zhun vaguely pondered some of his ideas, and then his thoughts changed: Perhaps His Majesty also used this to test His Highness, to let the Crown Prince establish his authority, and also to see if the Crown Prince has the ability to control the rudder of the world.
No wonder His Highness summoned himself from Qinghai so carefully...