In the fifty-first year of Qianlong's reign, on the second day of the seventh month, it was Guiyou day.
Southeast of the main entrance of the Summer Resort, Heshen's mansion. In the main hall, which is five couplets wide and three rooms deep, Heshen bowed to Wu Shengqin and said sincerely: "This time, if you don't tell me quickly, Heshen is in danger."
.Please accept your obeisance.”
Liu Quan on the side also knelt down quickly, kowtowed to Wu Shengqin, and said, "Thank you, Mr. Bai Hua, for saving your life!"
Wu Shengqin hurriedly went over to support He Shen and said, "Master Zhongtang, why are you doing this! The matter is over now, so let's not mention the past. This time it is just a small effort, and it should not be such a great gift. It will disgrace the students." After that, he said again.
He said to Liu Quanda: "Steward Liu, we have known each other for many years, why are you doing this? Please get up quickly!"
This Wu Shengqin, known as the most shameless scholar in the Qing Dynasty in later generations, had the courtesy name Chongzhi and the nickname Baihua, and was a native of Nanhui, Jiangsu. This man once taught at Xian'an Palace with his younger brother Wu Shenglan, and He Shen was his student at that time.
Later, in order to pass the imperial examination, this person attached himself to He Shen and actually recognized the student who was the examiner as his teacher.
After He Shen sat down again, the servants brought tea again, and He Shen smiled and said: "I haven't had time to ask you, why did you come here suddenly this time?"
"For this year's Shuntian Prefecture Township Examination, Xiaguan was appointed by the emperor as a supervisor. This time, he received the emperor's order and attended the ceremony together with Mr. Peng from the Ministry of Rites, Mr. A and Mr. Hu, the cabinet bachelors. Today,
After arriving, I handed over the sign and thought of coming to the main hall to pay my respects first."
He Shen nodded and smiled and said: "We must be cautious in the national talent promotion ceremony. The examination questions are of great importance and should not be leaked. The examination room must also be strictly monitored."
"Yes! I will not dare to forget the teachings of Master Zhongtang."
He Shen smiled and then said: "I will go in to see the emperor now. You can stay here tonight. We will have a long talk when you come back. Shuntian Prefecture Yin has many complicated things. If there is anything difficult or difficult to handle,
Let's talk later." After saying that, he said to Liu Quan who was standing aside: "Ask Mr. Hu to come and talk with Mr. Wu. Mr. Wu will arrange it in the west wing in the evening. I will come back after seeing the emperor."
After He Shen entered the Li Zhengmen in a sedan chair, he handed the sign to the Yi Gate outside Yanbo Zhishuang Building. After a while, the eunuch on duty came over and bowed to He Shen and said: "He Zhong Hall, the old man and the fifteenth master are in Jie De Hall.
, I asked you to come over."
Jiedetang is a group of rectangular courtyard buildings located to the north of Qingshushan Pavilion and in the center of Jinghu Lake. It was built in the 45th year of Qianlong's reign. This was where Qianlong studied on weekdays when he was stationed at the summer resort. There are three courtyard doors.
It is wide. The main hall as soon as you enter is the Jiedetang. There is an artificial pool behind the main hall. The verandah to the north of the pool is called "Jingxiang Pavilion". Qianlong would enjoy lotus flowers here when he was not busy.
When He Shen entered, he saw Qianlong sitting with his eyes closed facing south, and Yong Yan sitting on a small stool at the bottom.
"This slave pays his respects to his master!"
After waiting for a long time, Qianlong, who was sitting next to him, did not respond as usual. He Shen waited for a long time but did not see Qianlong speaking, so he raised his head slightly, only to see Qianlong with his eyes closed as if sleeping, and muttering something in his mouth.
Yongyan tilted his ears, as if trying to hear clearly.
After a while, Yong Yan finally gave up. He really couldn't understand what Qianlong was talking about.
Suddenly, Qianlong suddenly opened his eyes and shouted: "What's that person's name?!"
This loud shout immediately frightened Yong Yan, and she was immediately stunned. She thought to herself: "Who is that? Who are you asking?"
He Shen, who was kneeling on the ground, immediately stood up and answered without thinking: "Zhao Xin." Qianlong then stopped talking, closed his eyes, and began to recite silently.
After almost an hour, He Shen was kneeling with pain in his back, but he still endured it. At this time, Qianlong suddenly stretched out his hand, without saying a word, and waved to Yong Yan and He Shen respectively. The two knew that this was
Let yourself go out, bow down and then exit the main hall.
The two of them left the courtyard of Jiedetang and walked to a quiet and deserted place. Yongyan turned around and asked in a low voice: "Hezhongtang, what was the emperor reading just now? I didn't understand a word."
He Shen said in a low voice: "Fifteenth Master, please forgive me for being bold. I only dare to tell you this. Please don't spread it."
Yong Yan was stunned and said: "Who do you think I am?!"
He Shen turned his head and looked around. Seeing that there was no one around, he sighed and whispered: "What the master just recited silently is a secret spell from the Western Regions. If you recite this spell silently, the cursed person will be thousands of years away."
People will die without illness in places outside the house. When the master asked about it just now, I used the name of the traitor Zhao Xin to deal with it. Fifteenth Master, this is the matter. "
When Yong Yan heard this, he was shocked and horrified. He knew that Qianlong was very proficient in Tibetan Buddhism and sometimes practiced Tibetan Buddhist secrets with lamas, but he didn't expect that he could actually do this kind of magic. This is how afraid Zhao must be.
New! Even this method is used.
He Shen's thoughts were turning over and over again at this time. According to his guess, Qianlong must have been touched by something before, and then he cast a curse. However, he could not ask Yong Yan directly about this matter. He could only learn from Qianlong's recent two days.
Speculations based on God’s actions.
In the flash of lightning, He Shen's heart moved. He first thought of the books that Qianlong had been reading these days, and then thought of what Fukang'an had said before, that Zhao Xin's occupation of the Fuldan City area was to imitate the old events of Taizu and Taizong.
The answer is already clear to me.
The Emperor is so anxious! We have fought twice, and it is clear that we cannot defeat them without the number of people. If we raise more troops, the Eight Banners will be frightened, and the Green Camp will not be able to do it without the few people in the Green Camp. At present, drought and locust plagues are ongoing in various parts of the Central Plains, and the cults in Henan and Shandong have
The party is also ready to make a move, but I am afraid it will be too late this year. If Zhao Xin and his group continue to gain power, no one will be able to stop it.
It's so good, even the method of Nightmare Town was used! (According to the records of "Qing Barnai Lei Chao", Qianlong did do this during the White Lotus Sect uprising in Sichuan and Shaanxi.)
After the defeat of Fuldan City, Qianlong knocked out his teeth and swallowed his blood, and used the money to redeem more than 10,000 people. Now Duerjia is in prison, Fukang'an is at home thinking about his mistakes, and Agui has been demoted to Jiangsu.
They inspected the river work; but the dead Ushhada, E Hui and others took the biggest blame. Not only did they not receive any pension, their families were also exiled to Ili.
Fortunately, a group of redeemed Eight Banners elites and their families were grateful to Qianlong and saved some face for the court. When the Qing Dynasty thought about it afterwards, they were horrified to find that the person who gained the most this time was actually Heshen! This person not only won a
With the reputation of "going into a tiger's den and dealing with wolves alone", he also became a bachelor and the foreman of the military aircraft. The bannermen from all over the country, especially the families in the capital, praised He Shen, saying that if it weren't for He Zhongtang,
Your own home is finished.
This is also the reason why they secretly encouraged Cao Xibao to participate in the impeachment of Liu Quan, just to cause trouble and curb Heshen's momentum. Dong Gao, Liang Guozhi and others thought that if they did not curb it, the DPRK would really become Heshen's ""
It’s all in one word.”
After all calculations, Cao Xibao accidentally handed over to a hypocrite and showed the memorial to Wu Shengqin. As a result, the news was leaked in advance, allowing Liu Quan to demolish the house within three days to cover up the evidence. At the same time, Qianlong personally went out to investigate strictly, but in fact
In the end, the Qing faction was in disgrace. Cao Xibao couldn't say that he was instigated by others, so he had to make up the excuse of "coveting to be the chief examiner of the provincial examination".
In fact, the books Qianlong read recently were "History of the Ming Dynasty" and "Records of Taizu". The Ming Shenzong was also very happy at that time. After the three major conquests, the national treasury was exhausted. In the battle of Saarhu, the Ming army suffered heavy losses.
, his vitality was severely damaged, and the victory of the Jin Army not only stabilized his regime, but also seized the initiative in the Liaodong battlefield. Because of the huge military expenditures caused by the war, the Ming Dynasty continued to increase taxes and intensified domestic conflicts.
, leading to internal and external troubles in the Ming Dynasty.
The situation back then was so similar to today! At this time, the Qing faction still wanted to start a political dispute, so how could Qianlong not be alerted? He could just slap him to death.
After being screened and appeased, the redeemed Eight Banners soldiers have returned to various garrison cities to rest and recuperate. Now they have to hand over an offshore island to Zhao Ni for use; they even have to pretend to be blind and allow Zhao Ni to send people to land in Guangzhou. This is all
Everything was a great shame and humiliation for Qianlong!
Since He Shen came back with Fukang'an, Du Erjia and others, Qianlong summoned more than a dozen people to inquire in person and learn more about what happened before and after, not letting go of any detail. Later, he ordered the princes and ministers to come up with a statement and propose a solution.
countermeasures.
To this day, the military attache faction headed by A Gui has had its backbone broken by Zhao Xin. A Gui, who is busy regulating the river, pretends to be deaf and mute and dare not get involved at all; while Fukang'an, who is shutting himself up at home and thinking about his past, resists the pressure and stabs him.
Xue wrote a memorial of ten thousand words. After reading it, Qianlong kept it without publishing it. Only Yong Yan and He Shen knew what it said specifically.
According to Yong Yan's idea, he still had to accumulate strength, practice and review the green camps in various places, and strengthen his armaments before fighting Zhao Xin. The originally expensive sailing battleship was also mentioned again. Qianlong thought about it and decided to start from Macau.
There, they bought two ships from the Westerners and ordered the Fujian shipyard to start building them.
But at present, disasters are happening all over the country, and Qianlong has continued to whitewash peace in these years. The money for the Old Summer Palace project was spent like water, and even the Ministry of Household Affairs could not come up with the money; so the heavy responsibility of raising funds fell on Heshen's shoulders.
Faced with such a situation, Yong Yan knew very well that even if Cao Xibao had real evidence, Qianlong must protect He Shen. Now the only one who can think of a way to get money is He Shen! So during the whole process, Yong Yan said nothing
hair.
What shocked Yong Yan the most was that He Shen could actually understand the incantation chanted by Qianlong! He probably also knew this kind of incantation. If he wanted to kill someone, he would recite the incantation like this, and no one could escape!
Thinking of this, Yong Yan's face became guilt-ridden, and she said in a deep voice: "Since the defeat in Jilin, the Sacred Heart has been worried and angry, having trouble sleeping and eating, and all kinds of anxiety are manifested in appearance. But there are still scofflaws in the court.
The thought of privately discussing saintly virtues and slandering ministers is heart-wrenching. At present, the military attachés in various places are doing well, but the civil servants are spending a lot of time and money, and they are watching it deteriorate day by day. The prosperous age created by the emperor himself cannot be allowed to be violated at will.
!”
"Fifteenth Master, my master is an emperor of all ages, with great strength and high demeanor! It is difficult to continue to be prosperous. This is something that has happened in all ages. But in my opinion, whether it is a bannerman or a local official, they are corrupt and rotten.
At best, there are only a few people. When it comes to the administration of officials, the servants think that the matter can be done, so the fifteenth master does not need to worry too much."
Yong Yan smiled slightly after hearing this and said, "Maybe I'm overthinking it." Although he said this, he didn't think so in his heart.
More than ten days ago, when Wang Erlie, who was appointed as the Shaanxi Provincial Supervisory Envoy, came to the Summer Resort to meet the Holy Spirit, he mentioned to Yong Yan that now the imperial court is eating a lot of grain, the treasury is empty, and the people are extremely poor. Who will eat the money? If it doesn't go down again, who will eat it?
If we make great efforts to rectify the officialdom, the officialdom will be weak and the people will not be able to make a living!
Yong Yan also shook his head and smiled bitterly at that time. There is a saying among the people that "officials are tigers and officials are wolves. If you drive away a tiger, what is left is a pack of hungry wolves." He has been working in the military aircraft department for several years, and he also understands that official governance is really
It’s a big article, but this is the one in front of me.
Thinking of this, Yong Yan said no more and said goodbye to He Shen in a hurry.
At some point, the sky had become gloomy, and the rolling dark clouds seemed to be pressing down from above. Suddenly, a bolt of lightning pierced the sky, and He Shen shrank in fear. He remembered the secret spell Qianlong had just cast,
I couldn't help but shudder, and quickly quickened my pace and walked towards Li's main entrance.
"Sneeze!" Zhao Xin sneezed three times in succession on the Thor, which was bumping along with the waves. The sound was so loud that the eardrums of everyone else in the cockpit hurt, and their ears were buzzing.
Ding Guofeng said: "Don't you have a cold?"
Ten minutes ago, it suddenly started raining on the sea. The fine raindrops were blown by the sea breeze and kept hitting the glass of the cockpit, making a crackling sound. Zhao Xin wiped his nose with paper and said, "I guess.
I went to the deck to blow it in the morning, so it’s not a big problem.”
After hearing this, A Miao quickly walked out of the door, ran to the restaurant on the second floor, made Zhao Xin a cup of cold medicine, and asked someone in the cafeteria to boil a pot of ginger syrup.
One day ago, the Leishen arrived near an island more than a hundred nautical miles away from Humen. This place already belongs to the open sea. According to Heshen's slave Wang Ping, if you walk a few dozen miles northwest from here, it is called
It is the big island of "Dangan Mountain". The boat party of the Cai family of the Thirteenth Party should have been waiting at Wailingding Island, fifty miles northwest of Danganshan Island, to pick up Liu Zheng and his party to land.
As a result, it suddenly rained heavily, so Ding Guofeng had no choice but to pilot the Thor. Under Liu Sheng's guidance, he carefully parked the ship in a sheltered bay on Dazuiwei Island; he waited for the rain to stop before heading to Wailingding Island.
.
In the smoky rain and fog, several wooden houses on the island were faintly visible. Ding Guofeng was surprised and said: "There are still people living here?"
Wang Ping on the side explained: "Master, this is a Danhu family."
Ding Guofeng nodded and said, "Oh, I've heard of the people on the water."
Wang Ping, a domestic slave, had some knowledge and continued to explain: "Master, you are really knowledgeable! At that time, Emperor Yongzheng opened the registration system for low-income households. After these households came ashore, they settled on the islands with few people.
Reclaim unused fields.”
At this time, Zhao Xin pursed his nose and said, "According to what you said, are we okay if they see us?"
"Mr. Zhao, it's okay. These people never dare to go ashore. They are most afraid of seeing officials."
"Oh? Why is this?" Since the boat couldn't leave anyway, Ding Guofeng decided to break the casserole and ask the question.
There were no chairs in the cockpit. Wang Ping stood for a long time, and his legs were sore. The cockpit was full of small flashing lights of various colors, and he couldn't understand anything. There were guards watching behind him, but Wang Ping didn't care at all.
Dare to move around at will, so he leaned carefully against the chart table and said: "Although Master Yongzheng is kind, his low status is always a low status. The fields on these islands must have never paid taxes. If they dare to report to the official,
The secret about the fields will be exposed. Besides, the navy and customs have sent people to inform them in advance, so please rest assured."
On Dazuiwei Island, a young man in his twenties was lying behind a huge rock, looking at the Thor in the bay, with a frightened look on his face. He turned around and ran through the heavy rain, and came to a rock
He walked into the cave at the back and said to the people warming themselves by the fire: "Brother 1, no, it's not good! There is a strange ship coming outside, it scares me to death!"
A twenty-year-old young man whom he called First Brother suddenly stood up, holding a long knife in his hand, and asked: "Are they officers and soldiers? Has anyone landed?"
The young man who reported the news shook his head: "It's raining too much outside, and it's impossible to get ashore. As for the boat, I can't say, it's too scary! Brother Yi, you'd better go and see for yourself."
"Brother One" sneered and said to the people in the cave: "I am short of a big boat! In this weather, if we really are an army officer, we will hijack the boat and kill him!"
At this time, a dozen other people in the cave also stood up and responded: "Listen to Brother Yi!"
After that, everyone picked up the thing and followed the messenger outside despite the heavy rain. When they got there, everyone was stunned and trembling with fear.
Is this a boat? Is this a boat? This is clearly a mountain!
Note: The so-called foreman military aircraft minister is just a name, there is no official term. The foreman military aircraft minister is required to be on duty every day and be ready for the emperor's summons at any time, even if the emperor is out on patrol. In the early days, anyone who was summoned by the emperor to discuss government affairs would
The foreman, the military minister, was responsible for drafting edicts in accordance with the emperor's decree and signing edicts sent to various officials. For Heshen, although he did not have enough years as a bachelor, he was with Qianlong every day. In fact, he was with Qianlong every day.
They were already regarded as the foremen of military aircraft. However, the military ministers of the Qing Dynasty were not considered prime ministers because they did not have the authority to approve memorials. They only helped the emperor with military affairs and made suggestions.