At this time, many people have begun to go out everywhere to look for the champion.
But obviously, the efficiency of these people is much lower, far less than that of factory guards.
It's a pity that those who are looking for the number one scholar will definitely not have anything to do with factory guards.
When Ma Yu heard that someone next door was asking about him, he felt quite contented. He had his own way of dealing with it.
But he leisurely returned to his study, thinking about what he had to do next.
For bulk goods, from shipment to berthing at the port, to sales receipts, bank interest and settlements from various cargo merchants.
There are too many things here that need to be finalized by yourself. Any mistake in any link will be fatal.
"Hey... I just regret that there are too few scholars in each vassal state." Ma Yu sighed and murmured to himself: "It would be great if there were more scholars. We can make some friends everywhere, even if we provide some
The message is also good.”
Ma Yu said, shaking his head with regret.
Ma Sandao: "Master, I heard that in Taiping Mansion, scholars are being arrested everywhere."
"How can this be called arrest?" Ma Yu smiled and said, "This is called asking scholars to find something to do, and it is called loyalty and filial piety."
Ma Sandao: "Youngster actually doesn't understand. I only know that no one inside or outside Taiping Mansion dares to wear a silk scarf or a Confucian shirt for fear of being considered a scholar and being arrested for both loyalty and filial piety."
After hearing this, Ma Yu laughed and said, "Interesting. Aren't you just like me? Although I have great fame, I don't look like a scholar when I look at it vertically or horizontally."
At this point, he seemed to suddenly remember something, suddenly clapped his head and said: "Yes, I have a new idea."
After saying that, he said excitedly: "Come here, give me pen and ink, and repair the book."
Ma San said with some reluctance: "Young Master, sir, would you like to reply to a letter..."
Ma Yu put away some of his interest in vain, shook his head and said: "Now is not the time. If he knows that I resigned, he will be furious and come to the capital to beat me."
Ma San said with a sad face: "I'm afraid my legs will be broken by then, wuwuwu... my legs are gone."
Ma Yu remained silent, raised his pen with his eyebrows lowered, and ignored him.
…
Wenyuan Pavilion.
"Have you found Ma Yu?" Hu Guang asked someone almost every now and then.
And Sheren's answer every time was: "We have asked the Ministry of Punishments to send people to look for him, but... we can't find him no matter what, and we even issued a reward."
Hu Guang frowned and said, "Isn't there anyone in the whole world who has seen him?"
Sheren said in a dumbfounded way: "When I told Mr. Hu, it wasn't that no one saw it, but after the reward was awarded, too many people said they saw it. In just ten days, reports came from various places, saying that they were investigating.
There were more than a thousand clues to his traces, and it was only after the people from the Ministry of Punishment verified them one by one that they discovered... most of them... were just based on suspicion..."
After hearing this, Hu Guang said angrily: "Why is it so easy for Jin Yiwei to find someone?"
"This..." Nashe said: "Jinyiwei is different. They have specialized...whatever intelligence analysis is called. They also collect clues, but they have a specialized intelligence station to screen all information, and they are everywhere
We have set up ears and eyes, so the information is much more reliable. Otherwise, Duke Hu will send a note to the Prince of Wuhu..."
Hu Guang quickly stopped him and said: "Isn't that a sheep entering a tiger's mouth? Who is Ma Yu? I don't know how many times Ma Yu cursed Zhang Anshi back then. Have you ever heard that Han thieves are not at odds with each other? Ma Yu must have a strong character and be the champion.
Sir, there must be some people who are proud of their talents. If the Jin Yiwei were to investigate, and the Jin Yiwei found out some of his deeds, who knows whether they would kill him? Even if Zhang Anshi is generous, he can't help the people under the Jin Yiwei having evil thoughts.
."
"I understand, I understand. But I heard that nowadays, all scholars are in danger. In the past, there were guards in royal robes arresting the scholars, and in the back, the number one scholar disappeared without a trace..."
Hu Guang sighed: "Hey... let's continue searching."
He just sighed, but he became more and more worried about the current situation.
Sea trade in Taiping Prefecture finally began with the launching of sea ships one after another.
Soon after, Zhang Anshi issued a royal edict, stating that all merchant ships traveling within the four seas of the world would be protected.
This kind of protection is not only for the vassal state, but also for the maritime merchants of Dashi and Tianzhu.
At this time, the most satisfied person was Zhu Qiongjin, the king of the Tang Dynasty who was building a city in Malacca. After he came to the capital, he immediately felt keenly that his good time had come.
There are many Han people in Malacca, but the defense here is small and there are many natives. If it were not for the mutual horns with the kings of Annan, Chenla and other places, they might really be driven into the sea by the natives who are all over the mountains and plains.
Therefore, his development progress was not rapid, and now he has only built three cities. Malacca, connecting the Tianzhu Sea and the Western Ocean, is an important maritime channel.
This means that many vassal ships may dock in his vassal territory for relay. Not only that, but also a large number of Da Shi maritime merchants and Tianzhu maritime merchants. Once they can transit here, their vassal territory will be in the future.
, the maximum benefit.
The other vassal states have also prepared a large amount of products and are just waiting for the Taiping Mansion's ships to arrive.
Time is a business opportunity. When a ship goes to sea, merchants will almost immediately take advantage of this opportunity and immediately carry a large amount of goods and quickly go to sea.
Ships gathered at Songjiang Port for a while.
Dozens of shipyards, in order to build ships, are working hard to improve the technology, especially the manufacturing process.
There was originally a large amount of skill reserves in the manufacture of ships for voyages to the Western Ocean. Now, under the temptation of gold and silver, the level of this kind of manufacturing management has become higher and higher.
The first batch of merchant ships have already set sail.
Like a group of people trying to catch a crab, everyone in Taiping Mansion seems to be waiting for news.
It was at the end of the eighteenth year of Yongle.
Chen Li lamented that there are fewer and fewer scholars nowadays, and even if there are scholars, they don't want to go out wearing turbans and Confucian shirts. It is really difficult to identify them.
However, Zhang Anshi had to comfort him. The road was tortuous, but the future was bright. There would always be a time when he would catch all the scholars in one fell swoop and send them to places all over the world to fulfill their filial piety and loyalty.
As long as the imperial court still holds imperial examinations, there is no fear that scholars will not come to Beijing. Even if they hide their identities after entering Beijing, once the results are released, there is no fear that they will not look at them.
The effect of arresting people under the ranking is obvious. Those who are in high school are naturally made to be officials. Those who fall behind in the ranking can be directly reformed and sent to the sea.
At this moment, an old man entered the capital.
This man was wearing an old shirt and a shabby turban.
Fortunately, he is old and no one is interested in him even if he is dressed like this.
What Jin Yiwei likes is the kind of young and strong scholar, not the old Confucian scholar who is sent to the ship and may have to eat when he gets there.
The old Confucian scholar looked sad. Under the care of an old servant and a young man, he arrived at the Confucius Temple first.
This young man is his youngest son, named Ma Chao.
And this old Confucian scholar, whose surname is Ma, is famous.
Although his name was Ma Yang and his poems and books were passed down to his family, his fortune was not good. He had studied all his life but had not become famous. In fact, he was just an old boy.
The family business has been running for generations, but whether it is due to poor management or bad luck, the past few generations have not been as prosperous as before.
But even so, the thin camel was bigger than the horse, and the Ma family still produced talents. For example, his eldest son Ma Yu became the top scorer in high school.
The news spread to Shandong, and the chief envoys and academic administrators of the Shandong Chief Envoys' Department visited Ma's house in person. This was a blessing that the entire Shandong Chief Envoys' Department had not seen in hundreds of years, and in one fell swoop the situation of the Northerners not having the number one scholar was reversed. .
At that time, I was so happy that Ma became famous. My ancestors had accumulated great virtues!
But he was not happy for a long time, but he learned that his son had resigned.
Someone from the Ministry of Punishment also went to Shandong to look for Ma Yu and asked him if he had returned home.
Ma Yangming was shocked at that time and waited anxiously for the news, but Ma Yu was nowhere to be seen, as if he had disappeared out of thin air.
Although he also wrote a letter and came back, the letter was unclear, saying only that he did not want to be an official and wanted to do something of his own.
Ma Yangming, he...can't accept it.
So he stayed at home for several months, anxiously looking forward to letters from home. After several disappointments, Ma Yangming finally decided to take his whole family to Beijing to find his son.
Arriving in this huge capital, Ma Yangming looked sad. After staying at the inn in Confucius Temple, he immediately asked his second son, Ma Chao, to look around his fellow villagers for information.
When they heard that Mr. Ma had arrived in Beijing, they were already paying attention to Ma Yu's fellow villagers. In the same year, even the Gongun princes from many temples came here to see him.
Some people do it purely out of sympathy.
Some people also want to get some news from Father Ma.
Although some people think that Ma Yu's whereabouts are unknown, he is the champion after all. Maybe someone will find him in the future and he will still have a bright future. It is better to burn a cold stove at this time.
Of course, it's not purely out of concern.
Suddenly, the small inn was filled with carriages and horses, and even Xia Yuanji, the minister of household affairs, came in a hurry and talked to Father Ma for a long time before leaving.
As for other imperial officials, there are actually many such as Hanlin, Yushi, and even heads of various ministries and doctors.
Many Jinshi scholars who went to high school with Ma Yu also came to pay their respects.
Ma Yangming had mixed feelings. If his son was safe, he would be like them in this life, and he might even have a brighter future than them.
But now...
He burst into tears several times, and after crying again and again, he could not sleep.
Immediately afterwards, some fellow villagers came to visit.
When you arrive in the capital and hear the local accent, you will naturally feel particularly friendly.
"How come there's no news at all? Why is such a big, well-behaved person missing?"
Ma Yangming trembled and pursed his lips, with a sad look on his face.
Ma Chao, who was standing aside, also said worriedly: "Dad, will something happen to my brother?"
When he said this, Ma Yangming immediately flew into a rage, raised his stick and beat him, and cursed: "Beast, your brother has been in trouble, what good does it do to you? You bastard, you usually only cheat and play, and you haven't made any progress in your studies.
, without your brother, the Ma family will be defeated at your hands."
Ma Chao hid and said, "I said it casually..."
The fellow villagers came to stop them and said: "Mr. Ma, calm down, calm down..."
"This is not a solution to the problem. Just go home and fight again."
Ma Yangming was panting, his eyes were red, and he said sadly: "I'm suffering, I'm suffering. I have been studying all my life, but I am just an old boy who can't hold my head up. I finally had a promising child, but now...he has disappeared.
Yes. I am the most well-behaved, most responsible, and well-behaved person. Why is he missing... Wuwuwu..."
Sobbing, tears streaming down her face.
Ma Chao muttered sadly: "My family is in ruins to begin with. This time when I came to Beijing, all the expenses along the way were raised by selling seven or eight acres of land at home..."
At this time, someone finally said: "Ma Gong, I just want to ask you, have you heard of some things?"
Ma Yangming looked at the person's solemn look, hurriedly put away his tears and said, "What's the matter?"
"You didn't know that no one told you before?"
Ma Yangming shook his head, looking confused.
"Hey, it seems that no matter how wise everyone is to protect themselves, they are unwilling to tell the truth..."
Ma Yangming became more and more worried after hearing this, and said seriously: "Just tell me, if we fellow villagers have any news, please don't hide it from me... I... I will kowtow to you."
The fellow countryman was horrified and quickly waved his hands and said: "I'll break it, I'll break it, okay..."
This man's heart was filled with anger, and he stamped his feet and said: "These days, the Jinyiwei are catching scholars everywhere and selling them to the sea. Many scholars have suffered unreasonable disasters. It is difficult to describe the misery here. In fact, many people doubt whether it is Brother Ma Nian.
, he was captured by the Jin Yiwei and sent to Java."
Ma Yangming shuddered suddenly and said in disbelief: "He is the number one scholar, so he shouldn't be like this."
"There's nothing Jin Yiwei hasn't dared to do these years!"
Ma Yangming added: "But he still studied and returned to his hometown..."
"You don't know. Jinyiwei is very cunning. After arresting people, they teach them to repair books and return to their hometowns. And do you know about Java? Some secrets have just been spread recently, saying that Java deceived many scholars.
They were sent to do corvee service and taught how to repair books. All letters must be checked and only good things can be said. If they say bad things, they will suffer disaster."
After Ma Yangming heard this, his heart suddenly thumped, and then he said with a horrified face: "In this case, my son was most likely taken away by the damn Java Kingdom or the Jin Yiwei?"
"I can only say that they are inseparable. It's just that in this matter, the Jin Yiwei is using the name of loyalty and filial piety, but the scholars dare to be angry and dare not speak out under this power, hey..."
Ma Yangming stared, slammed the document, and said angrily: "Why don't you dare to say anything? My son is gone, do they think I will be afraid? If you have the ability, just kill me, but if it doesn't work, kill me
The whole family chopped up my young son Ma Chao and fed it to the dogs. If I frown for this, I am not considered a disciple of the saint. As long as my Yuer can see the light of day again, the Ma family will be dead and it will be nothing more than a sesame seed.
thing!"
Ma Chao: "..."
He is so heartbroken!
The fellow villagers started talking: "Yes, how many lifetimes of virtue have been accumulated to produce such a top scholar..."
"Mr. Ma... I'm afraid I have to ask Mr. Hu or Mr. Xia in the temple to see if they are willing to make the decision..."
"I think Hu Gong and Xia Gong are of no use. After all, they are gone, and there is no real evidence that they were taken away by Jin Yiwei. No matter how willing Hu Gong and Xia Gong are to help, what can they do as long as Jin Yiwei denies it?"
Ma Yang slapped the case with a famous voice and said: "I don't care about other things. I only want my son. For the sake of my son, I don't care about anything. He is a great guard, so I will make trouble to the point where God will listen."
Everyone said: "I'm afraid no one is taking care of this matter."
Ma Yangming sneered: "Fortunately, you are also from Shandong. You don't know that we in Shandong... have ways to deal with these people."
Everyone was puzzled.
Ma Yangming said no more, his eyes burst out with a firm gaze, as if he had made up his mind, like an old monk sitting still.
…………
Wuhu County Prince's Mansion.
Outside the palace, there were many people coming and going, some carrying orders, and some coming to see him.
Among the bustling crowd.
Suddenly three people emerged.
The first person is Ma Yangming.
Ma Yangming walked in the front, followed by the timid Ma Chao.
Ma Yangming arrived outside the palace, turned around and said to Ma Chao: "Chao'er, give me the things to spread out."
Ma Chao was so frightened that his teeth chattered, and he said with a grimace: "Dad, you have to think clearly. Even if you don't think about yourself, you still have to think about your son."
Ma Yang was trembling with fame and gritted his teeth: "Do you still want your brother? You beast, how much is your life worth? You... you... can the Ma family still count on you? As long as your brother has
The glimmer of hope is that if we all die without our bodies intact and our bodies broken into thousands of pieces, it’s still worth it, so hurry up!”
"Dad..." Ma Chao wailed and sobbed.
But in the end, he could no longer resist, but he obediently opened his bag and pulled out a huge silk portrait.
Immediately, under Ma Yangming's fierce gaze, he fearfully propped up the silk portrait on a pole.
The guards of the county prince's palace at the door felt strange and wanted to step forward to question him.
But when he took a closer look at the flag-pan, his color suddenly changed.
But they saw that there was a portrait on the flag, and the person in the portrait... Not to mention, everyone recognized the words on it, writing: Imperial Emperor Taizu Gao's portrait!
The guards were so shocked that they were speechless.
Then, Ma Yangming's roar came out: "Emperor Taizu Gao is here in person. Everyone, come and see. Emperor Taizu Gao, please open your eyes and see how the top scholar in the department was treated with indifference. Take a look."
Look, there is no king in this world, oh, give me back my son, give me back my son."
He called this.
Suddenly, the people around him were shocked and quickly stepped aside.
Even the guards of the prince's palace did not dare to approach and hesitated, but some clever people quickly turned around and ran towards the prince's palace like crazy.
The portrait of Emperor Taizu Gao was fluttering, but the flagpole was trembling, but it was Ma Chao who was flying the flag, his body like a sieve of chaff.
Every howl from his father made him feel like he was one step closer to being shattered into ashes.