Zhu Hao and his party entered Nanjing City from Shuimen on the afternoon of September 22nd.
The Nanjing Ministry of Household Affairs sent people to the pier to greet them, represented by Yuan Ying, a member of the Zhejiang Qing Dynasty Department of Civil Affairs, and Yang Weicong, the chief officer, who saw Zhu Hao and Yu Chengxun as they landed.
Yuan Ying is in her forties. As her name suggests, she has a slight smile on her lips, giving people the feeling of a big girl getting into a sedan chair. It is almost October now, and the weather is getting colder. She is actually holding a folding fan in her hand, and she speaks with a certain tone.
The male duck voice makes people feel a little uncomfortable.
Yang Weicong only greeted Yu Chengxun and turned a deaf ear to Zhu Hao. Even when Yu Chengxun introduced Zhu Hao to him, Yang Weicong didn't pay attention.
Zhu Hao was secretly happy: Young man, you are very resentful!
The group got on the carriage and went to the hotel. When they arrived at the place, Zhu Hao discovered that it was neither a post station nor an inn, but a house arranged by the Ministry of Revenue. It was very close to Nanliubu Yamen, with only one street in between. After entering the house,
Walking around the screen wall, you can see a green pool, surrounded by pavilions, pavilions, rockeries and pavilions. Not to mention hosting two imperial princes, this place is not shabby at all even when princes and princes come.
"It was all arranged by Huang Butang... Huang Butang knew that the two of them were coming. He not only invited the best cooks in Jiangnan, but also invited the theater troupe. This Nan Opera Kunjiao is a unique one, walking around on the stage.
, it’s so pleasing to the eye, that cute little appearance... Hehe, it’s so beautiful.”
Yuan Ying smiled and explained the romance to Zhu Hao and Yu Chengxun.
Nanjing is far away from the center. Although it is not as far away as the emperor, it is still in a line of its own. Officials from the central and central courts are sent to Nanjing to enjoy peace and prosperity.
The more prosperous a place is, the more emphasis is placed on eating, drinking and having fun. It seems that Yuan Ying is very good at welcoming and sending people off. No wonder they arranged for him to receive the two of them.
However, Zhu Hao knew that there was another important reason for Yuan Ying to take action, that is, the accounts that Zhu Hao and Yu Chengxun wanted to investigate involved coastal defense. Zhejiang is adjacent to the Southern Zhili Province and is the focus of coastal defense. Yuan Ying, a member of the Zhejiang Qing Dynasty official department, was a foreign minister.
Thinking about the accounts more clearly makes it easier and faster to hand over documents and files.
Yu Chengxun was very excited after hearing this. He smiled and asked Yang Weicong on the side: "Dafu seems to have gained some weight during his stay in Nanjing. Do you want to come to the south to support people?"
When Yang Weicong heard this, he felt bad.
Do you think I like to stay in Nanjing?
This place is relaxing, but I don’t want to stay any longer. I am the second best person in the rankings, and I still want to make a difference in the government. Who wants to come to Nanjing to retire at a young age?
Yuan Ying waved her hand and called over a guard who was looking after the garden: "This is Shopkeeper Han. He is responsible for taking care of the garden. If you have anything to do, just tell Shopkeeper Han. This time, the Ministry of Accounts has allocated 600 taels of silver for special use.
Come and greet the two of you..."
When the number of "six hundred taels of silver" was told, not to mention Yu Chengxun, even Yang Weicong was slightly surprised.
It is rare and common for Nanhubu to send some money to welcome people, but who are Zhu Hao and Yu Chengxun? They are just two Hanlin editors!
The official status is not high, even if he is an imperial envoy, he cannot have much contact with the senior officials, so he allocates a huge sum of six hundred taels like this?
Darling, if this is allocated, the cost of three hundred taels per person, if you only live in Nanjing for a month as planned...the entertainment standard is ten taels per person per day... Just think about this era, the annual salary of a county magistrate is only more than thirty taels
Silver, you know how scary it is.
Zhu Hao looked surprised: "This...how is this so embarrassing?"
However, Yu Chengxun asked hypocritically: "Will it... affect the year-end accounts of the Accounts Department?"
When we arrived in Nanjing as special envoys of the imperial court, the Nanjing Ministry of Finance gave us a reception fee of three hundred taels per person. It made it clear that there was something fishy in the accounts and wanted us to help cover it up.
Otherwise, if Nanjing is so wealthy, would any official come here with such a high standard of reception?
Go ahead and dream!
Yuan Ying said: "You two have met with someone else. Everything was arranged by Huang Butang of the Ministry of Revenue. The silver taels used did not go through official channels. In fact, the yamen only allocated... less than ten taels of silver to greet you two."
Yang Weicong and Yu Chengxun looked at each other.
Nanhu Yamen gave out ten taels, and Huang Zan alone gave out five hundred and ninety taels?
No wonder he lived in a private mansion when he came up.
Inviting a cook and a theater troupe, Zhu Hao and Yu Chengxun were treated like emperors. Even Yang Weicong, who grew up in a wealthy family, was eye-opening.
Yu Chengxun's face was filled with pride. He felt that this was all due to his father-in-law Yang Tinghe. Huang Zan wanted to curry favor with them and let them say a few nice words in front of Yang Tinghe when they returned to the capital.
Thinking of this, Yu Chengxun nodded in agreement: "Then thank Huang Butang for the arrangement. We are here for business, so please make arrangements as soon as possible for us to check the relevant accounts."
Yuan Ying had a flattering smile on her face and said repeatedly: "Yes, yes, I will have the account books delivered to my house later. Shopkeeper Han, what are you waiting for? Quickly arrange the wine and food, and then let the troupe
Let’s make some preparations. Tonight we will have two consecutive performances, a duet show, the more lively the better. Kun Jiao wants to show off his skills and greet the two superiors..."
…
…
Zhu Hao and Yu Chengxun stayed in the house.
The garden layout in the south of the Yangtze River is not the courtyard courtyard in the north. It does not look very neat, but in fact the front and rear courtyards are neatly laid out. The courtyard has five entrances. Zhu Hao lives in the east courtyard, and Yu Chengxun is arranged to live in the north courtyard, where they can discuss things or watch plays.
In the front yard, there is also a west yard specially used to receive guests...and there are also a west cross yard and a north side yard for offices...
That night, Yuan Ying was originally going to marry the two of them, but Yu Chengxun declined because he wanted to talk to Yang Weicong alone that night.
Before leaving, Yuan Ying reminded with a smile: "You two, because this case is an important one ordered by the emperor, the Nanjing Household Department, Nanjing Jinyiwei and Nanjing Guards Yamen will send people to come. They may come at any time, or someone may visit at an inappropriate time. Just say
Just give me a shout and we’ll make other arrangements.”
The person responsible for receiving Zhu Hao and Yu Chengxun was the Nanjing Household Department.
But in fact, this case mainly involves the Nanjing garrison yamen.
Nanjing Jinyiwei is responsible for the investigation, which is equivalent to following orders. The Nanjing Account Department is only responsible for providing accounting support... But since the accounts are sent to the Account Department, they must be processed, and it is impossible to find problems from them.
Afterwards, they still have to visit various warehouses in Nanjing, and then review the budgets, allocations, expenses, reports, etc. of various places in Haiphong. In fact, Zhu Hao and Yu Chengxun's next work is not easy.
Yu Chengxun said: "We are here to do business, not to enjoy ourselves. Let the visitors know that no matter how late it is, as long as we are here, we will come out to meet each other, so don't have any worries."
"Yes Yes."
With a smile on her face, Yuan Ying nodded and said, "In that case, I won't disturb you two... Ah, no, you three are resting. Take your leave and come back tomorrow."
The reason for mentioning three is because Yang Weicong, who was sent to Nanjing by Yang Tinghe in advance, considered himself to be Yang Tinghe's loyal subordinate. In the next few days, Yang Weicong also planned to treat this courtyard as his home.
Knowing that Huang Zan had allocated 600 taels of silver as reception fee, why didn't Yang Weicong take the opportunity to come over and get some benefits?
In the evening, there was a tanghui singing, and there were two channels on the left and right, and the theater troupe with beautiful female actors was called. After the tanghui was sung, there were of course entertainment programs... Wouldn't it be a big loss if we didn't enjoy this debauchery?
After a long absence, Yang Weicong wanted to discuss something with Yu Chengxun, so he winked and motioned to find a room to talk alone.
Yu Chengxun was afraid that Zhu Hao would think too much, so he originally wanted to ask Zhu Hao to come with him, but Zhu Hao insisted on going to the east courtyard to rest for a while, saying that he was tired from the journey, and would come out to meet him later, and then they would have dinner and watch a show.
Zhu Hao didn't care what Yang Weicong had to say to Yu Chengxun.
Originally, Yang Weicong, as a confidant of Yang Tinghe, should have a bright future. He insisted on following the Hanlin Academy system and eventually joined the cabinet. Who knew that he would be let out? I must not have thought of it.
Zhu Hao knew very well that Yang Weicong was just starting out and had no foundation in the court. He was sent to Nanjing thinking that he could continue to be respected by Yang Tinghe, but he didn't know that even Yu Chengxun was too lazy to greet this "cheating" villain.
Zhu Hao arrived at the east courtyard.
Before entering, I saw four beautiful maids coming out. They came specially to deliver bedding, toiletries, candlesticks and other daily necessities.
Shopkeeper Han stood in the yard and waited respectfully. When he saw Zhu Hao, he knelt down and kowtowed.
"Shopkeeper Han, what are you doing?"
Zhu Hao didn't help him, but asked with a smile.
Shopkeeper Han said: "I am a slave of the Su family. The master of the house is not in Nanjing at the moment. When I learned that the adults were coming, I specifically asked me to arrange everything without making any mistakes."
One sentence tells the truth.
Zhu Hao and Yu Chengxun were able to receive such careful care, obviously because of Zhu Hao's face.
"Get up, why are you so embarrassed? In public, Shopkeeper Han, you have to be careful to avoid suspicion."
Not reaching out to hit the smiling man, Zhu Hao held his hands up and said with a smile.
Shopkeeper Han stood up quickly after hearing this, and said with fear: "Please forgive me for not thinking well... If you need me in the future, just let me know. My head of the family said that even if you want the moon in the sky, I will find a way to get it for you."
.”
"Oh! What are you doing, Mr. Su? It's like I'm here to enjoy a blessing." Zhu Hao shook his head and sighed.
Shopkeeper Han said: "Your Majesty, when you come to Nanjing, the head of my family will naturally greet you well. In addition, Mr. Huang sent someone to send a message, saying that you can go and see him at your convenience to discuss some matters. You see..."
When Su Xigui knew that Zhu Hao had arrived in Nanjing, he naturally wanted to say hello to Huang Zan.
Although Su Xigui didn't know how many things Zhu Hao had done for the emperor, he at least knew that Zhu Hao was the one who spoke in front of Emperor Jiajing. In the new emperor's system, except for the new emperor, everyone else followed Zhu Hao's lead and even acted in important matters.
Zhu Si must listen to Zhu Hao.
In this way, even if Su Xigui was not in Nanjing, he quickly wrote to his brother-in-law and asked Huang Zan to greet Zhu Hao properly. However, Huang Zan did not show off to Nan Shangshu and was going to meet Zhu Hao directly.
Zhu Hao has been dealing with Huang Zan for many years, but he has never had direct contact with him.
Zhu Hao also wanted to see what this veteran official in the court, who had risen through the ranks and whose fate was first changed by him, looked like.
"Okay, I'll find a time that's convenient for everyone in the next two days, and finally I'll meet with Yu Hanlin when we are working separately...otherwise I won't be able to explain the situation."
Zhu Hao meant to avoid Yu Chengxun first.
After all, this person is here to supervise me, or we should supervise each other.
Although this kind of supervision is not strong, it is still necessary to avoid being discovered by it.
Shopkeeper Han smiled and said, "Then I won't disturb your rest... Oh, by the way, your uncle... Mr. Qianhu Zhu sent someone to send a message, saying that he is coming to visit tonight."