Chapter 509: What is the purpose of Emperor Mingkang’s consternation?
"Your Majesty, there is a secret report!"
Daming Palace, Dai Quan hurriedly walked in from the outside with small steps.
When Emperor Kangdi of the Ming Dynasty heard Dai Quan's words, he seemed not to hear them. He didn't raise his head to look at him until he finished approving the memorial on the eucalyptus.
"Tell me! What's going on?"
Dai Quan cupped his hands and spoke respectfully.
"Report to Your Majesty, Chunhua Tower, Wu Zongshan, Shuirong and several princes have kidnapped Xue Pan of the Xue family. Duke Rongguo's Mansion sent people to Shuntian Mansion to report the case. Lord Fu Yin is not sure how to handle this matter.
So I sent someone to send it over quickly, asking the emperor for a warning!"
Emperor Mingkang snorted when he heard this.
"These bastards have not learned their lesson all day long. They have been hiding in Goulan tile houses, and now they have kidnapped people. Does this mean they don't take me and the court seriously??"
Emperor Mingkang's tone was serious, but then he couldn't help but frown again.
"Who is Xue Pan? How come the Duke of Rongguo is involved in this matter again??"
As the leader of a country, he has a lot of things to do. He doesn't have time to remember the name of a small character, so he has no impression of who Xue Pan is.
Think about it, Emperor Mingkang had dealt with the other party before, but now he has no impression at all.
Emperor Kang of the Ming Dynasty could forget, but Dai Quan, the eunuch in charge of the Daming Palace, could not.
After hearing Emperor Mingkang's question, Dai Quan organized his speech and said again: "Back to the emperor, Xue Pan is the son of the Xue family. The ancestor of the Xue family led the scattered officials of Ziweishen. Later, he and the Wang family, Jia family,
The three families of the Shi family got married. Last time, Jia Rong and Xue Pan of the Jia family committed a crime and were punished. If not for the mercy of the emperor, these two blind people would have spent the New Year in a prison!"
In just three or two sentences, Dai Quan listed the important information about Xue Pan, and also partially explained the relationship between the Xue family, the Jia family, the Wang family, and the Shi family.
After hearing this, Emperor Mingkang had a general understanding.
As for the matters he dealt with, Emperor Mingkang didn't pay much attention to them. There were so many people he dealt with, how could he write them down one by one?
"Why did those little brats tie up Xue Pan??"
Emperor Mingkang was not polite and bluntly said that Wu Zongshan and others were little bastards.
Dai Quan was confused about this issue. The governor did not give a specific reason because they didn't know either. However, when Emperor Mingkang asked, he had to tell him.
So after thinking for a while, he continued: "Back to the emperor, I heard that the princes are short of money and want to ask the Xue family for money!"
Emperor Mingkang was stunned, as if he didn't believe it, so he couldn't help but raise his head and look at Dai Quan again.
“Want money??”
Regarding this answer, Emperor Mingkang's expression was as strange as possible. Who are those people who are short of money?
"The Xue family is very rich. How does it compare to the Zhen family in Jiangnan?"
After a while, Emperor Mingkang suddenly asked.
However, this time the question was not about whether Dai Quan had made a mistake, but about such a strange question.
Dai Quan thought about it and was not sure.
He has dealt with the Xue family. He is not sure how much wealth the Xue family has, but if compared with the Zhen family, it pales into insignificance. The Zhen family is extremely wealthy in Jiangnan.
No matter how rich the Xue family is, they will never be able to compare with the Zhen family.
"Back to the emperor, how can the Xue family be compared with the Zhen family? In this generation, the Xue family has actually declined. The only male in the family is Xue Pan, and he is an idler. Even if the Xue family still has some money left, I guess
It won’t last long.”
Emperor Mingkang nodded when he heard Dai Quan's words.
Then he asked casually: "How much money do those people ask for from the Xue family?"
Dai Quan did not dare to hide anything and told the truth.
"One hundred thousand taels!"
"How many??"
Emperor Mingkang was really stunned this time. Good guy, this opening is only one hundred thousand taels, which is more grand than the imperial court. He has a memorial here about the Ministry of Works, saying that he will build a mausoleum for Emperor Taikang.
It requires funding from the Ministry of Household Affairs, and the first phase requires 50,000 taels of silver.
The Ministry of Household Affairs refused to give it, and even made a fuss about it, filing a memorial and making a small report!
Now is the time when the court is in difficulty. Let alone one hundred thousand taels, let alone thirty thousand taels or twenty thousand taels. He would not mind it.
"Dai Quan, didn't you say that the Xue family is inferior to the Zhen family? It costs one hundred thousand taels to kidnap someone??"
When Dai Quan heard what Emperor Mingkang said, he couldn't help but feel shocked.
At this time, he suddenly remembered that the current situation in the court was difficult, and Emperor Mingkang was worrying about the treasury these days!
In fact, speaking of it, the Xue family is not as good as the Zhen family. Back then, Lin Ruhai led people to plunder the Zhen family, and the money even exceeded tens of millions. Isn't the Xue family's 108,000 yuan just too good to be flattered?
However, at this moment, the Zhen family has collapsed. They have mobilized troops for disaster relief for many years, and money has been wasted. The national treasury has no time to replenish it, and now it is unsustainable.
That's why the Ministry of Revenue came up with this strategy and temporarily withheld the money for building the mausoleum.
"Your Majesty, how about we pick up everyone??"
After hesitating for a moment, Dai Quan spoke again.
Emperor Mingkang couldn't help but narrowed his eyes when he heard Dai Quan's suggestion.
These people have long hands! Once he imprisons them, the forces behind them will inevitably move around. According to his own estimation, if things are really as he thinks, this alone will probably bring in hundreds of thousands of taels of income.
However, this matter is somewhat unrealistic.
Besides, such a thing cannot set a precedent. After thinking about it, Emperor Mingkang suppressed this tempting idea.
And he also began to think about Wu Zongshan's true intention.
He knew whether those people were short of money or not. They must be short of money. Just like now, even he was short of money. There were so many things that needed to be taken care of in Da Kang Dynasty, including disaster relief, counterinsurgency, farming, etc.
Everything requires silver.
But this amount of money is not a small amount, nor is it a big hole that can be plugged with a mere hundred thousand taels. The four vassal kings are probably the same, and the difficulties they encounter are no less than himself, so he guessed that these people are not asking for the money.
true intention.
If there is anything worthy of coveting in the Jia family, after thinking about it, there is nothing. Moreover, the Xue family, the Jia family, the Wang family, and the Shi family are all in the same family, and they have offended four powerful families at once.
The little brat shouldn't act like this.
Going a step further, Emperor Mingkang thought of Lin Ruhai again. Now that Lin Ruhai has returned to the position of cabinet minister, his power status is not the same as before. If he wants to take the opportunity to win over him, it seems to be a good thing.
But there is another problem. Lin Ruhai is his confidant. This matter is known to everyone in the civil and military circles of the court. If these people had not been kicked in the head by a donkey, they would not have foolishly tried to win over such a person.