Xue Huan and Jiao Jing have always been diehard loyalists of Nangong. Zhu Qiyu knew this very well.
However, they are relatives of the emperor and have no evidence. It is not easy to move them. When you can really move them, it will not be a trivial matter.
What's more, Xue Huan's background and position make it difficult for him to escape from this vortex.
As a long-established noble house, the Yangwu Marquis Mansion has been in decline over the years. The old Yangwu Marquis Xue Lu was an old subordinate of the former British Duke Zhang Fu, and the two houses had a close relationship with each other.
After Xue Lu's death, none of his descendants had any ability. Only Xue Huan was outstanding, but unfortunately he was the second son and could not inherit the title.
Not being able to seize the title means not being able to hold the top power in the Five Military Governor's Mansion, which also means that the Yangwu Marquis Mansion will be squeezed out of the first echelon of nobles for a long time.
At this time, it was Empress Dowager Sun who took a fancy to Xue Huan and asked him to marry the eldest princess of Changde.
Nowadays, even after Hongzhi, the relatives were severely suppressed. The position of Prince Consort Captain can lead troops to fight.
What's more, the eldest princess of Changde is the emperor's sister and the legitimate daughter of the late emperor. She is a noble woman. Once the marriage is completed, the status of the Yangwu Marquis Mansion will be stabilized immediately.
In terms of birth, Xue Huan was born in the Yangwu Marquis Mansion, which has a strong imprint of the Northern Expedition. In terms of identity, Xue Huan is the son-in-law of the Empress Dowager Sun and the direct brother-in-law of Nangong. In terms of relationships, Xue Huan is the son-in-law of the Queen Mother Sun in Yang.
When Wuhou Mansion was about to decline, he gave it a hand.
Therefore, in fact, Xue Huan had no choice in terms of position.
Of course, if he was wiser and worked less hard, he might be able to save his life in the end, but there is no doubt that no matter what he thinks in his heart, he will have to go all the way to the dark side.
Therefore, Xue Huan's ending has already been determined. The best outcome is to save his life.
but……
Thinking of Princess Changde's tactful and even somewhat condescending attitude, Zhu Qiyu sighed softly.
Zhu Qiyu doesn't care whether Xue Huan dies or not, but the eldest princess of Changde...
After all, humans are not grass and trees, so how can we be ruthless?
Although Princess Changde and Zhu Qiyu were not born from the same mother, blood is thicker than water after all, and Zhu Qiyu did not want her to die in depression if possible.
So, after pondering for a moment, Zhu Qiyu suddenly asked.
"Mr. Yu, is the Yangwu Marquis Mansion involved in this inventory of military settlements?"
Although Yu Qian didn't know what it meant, he thought about it and said it anyway.
"Back to Your Majesty, there is currently no direct evidence that can prove that the Yangwu Marquis Mansion has invaded and occupied the military camp."
"However, according to the files I checked during my inspection at the border some time ago, the Yangwu Marquis Mansion did purchase many acres of land on the border. It is estimated that there are at least hundreds of acres."
"In addition, the distant cousins of the Yangwu Marquis Mansion and other branch clan members and their children also have many private lands registered in their names. Since I am investigating secretly, I cannot provide details. The specific situation may not be determined until after the father-in-law is cleared."
The words are euphemistic, but the meaning is actually quite clear.
On the surface, there are tens of thousands of acres of border land registered openly and honestly under the name of Yangwu Marquis Mansion.
This does not include those in the name of the collateral clansmen and the children of the family. If we want to add them, I am afraid this number will double.
Moreover, this is not over yet, although Yu Qian didn't say it.
But when you think about it, you will know that the dignified Houfu will obediently register all the fields in his hands into the government's books?
You know, when you register, you have to pay taxes.
With the backing of the Marquis Mansion, the hidden acres will only be more than what is on the books, never less.
When this amount is accumulated, it is definitely an extremely terrifying number.
Then the problem comes.
The Yangwu Marquis Mansion started in the Yongle period, and it has only been more than 30 years since it was crowned. Except for Xue Lu, the old Marquis of Yangwu, who went with the army to the north for many expeditions and patrolled the border, basically no other descendants of the Xue family have gone out.
Capital.
Moreover, even Xue Lu was transferred back to the capital as early as the Xuande period.
Under such circumstances, the Xue family actually has such a large amount of land on the border. Where did it come from?
Since no one from the Xue family has roots on the border, can the origins of the huge amounts of acres that suddenly appeared out of nowhere withstand investigation?
Yu Qian said this, firstly out of caution, and secondly because he didn't want to be too picky.
The implication is that as long as the court is willing to investigate, it is not difficult to obtain direct evidence.
Zhu Qiyu was silent for a moment, but did not express any opinion on this matter. Instead, he changed the subject and asked.
"Except for the Yangwu Marquis Mansion, what is the status of other dignitaries in the capital being involved?"
This time, Yu Qian's face showed a rare look of helplessness. He sighed and said.
"Back to Your Majesty, judging from the current situation, every noble family in Beijing basically has private land in the border towns. The difference is only in how much."
"In addition, after the generals take office, they can basically own private lands soon. During the secret investigation, I found that this has almost become a tacit rule."
With that said, Yu Qian glanced at Fan Guang next to him and continued.
"I'm afraid, even Governor Fan is not exempt from vulgarity."
After the words fell, Zhu Qiyu was also a little dazed, and then a wry smile appeared on his face. Yu Huihui really had a clear distinction between love and hate!
Fan Guanggui appreciates it, but he is not ambiguous in his official duties.
Fan Guang himself was also helpless. After being pointed out so directly by Yu Qian, he had no choice but to fall down after he had just stood up and said.
"Your Majesty, I do have a small amount of property in Liaodong, but I purchased it with my family's savings. I never used the officers and soldiers to cultivate it for private purposes or to occupy the original military camps of the imperial court."
"However, it is true that some of these acres have not been registered with the imperial court. I am willing to accept the crime and return all the acres to the military camp, and ask your Majesty to impose a fine."
Who said Governor Fan is a fool?
What he said not only tactfully extracted himself, but also cleverly avoided the key point.
To put it bluntly, Governor Fan himself has never done anything to drink the blood of soldiers. The fields in his hands were all purchased.
However, the origin of this field probably could not withstand investigation, so Governor Fan simply dedicated it directly to the court.
In fact, even if Yu Qian hadn't said anything, Fan Guang would have looked for an opportunity to do so in a few days when the campaign to reorganize the military settlements began.
Fan Guang could clearly see the emperor's determination in rectifying the army and garrison, so it was naturally impossible for him to go against the emperor on such a matter.
Of course, this was also because Fan Guang was able to escape, but this was a special case.
Fan Guang was originally just a small guard commander. After taking up the post for six years, he made many military exploits and was promoted step by step. It was only ten years ago.
Especially since he was in his prime, far from the time when he was old and frail and needed to buy property and leave it to his descendants.
Or in other words, for Fan Guang today, as long as he can take a further step in his official career, it is more useful than buying any amount of property.
In fact, Fan Guang did the same thing. The land in his name now was actually delivered to his door by others, and he couldn't refuse it, so he just accepted it conveniently.
Over the years, he has been focused on his mission, leaping into battle and putting most of his energy on the battlefield.
Finally, during the Battle of Oara, he was favored by the emperor and entrusted with important tasks. From an ordinary military commander, he became a hereditary nobleman.
Now, she is married to the Prince of Zhennan, and her status has been greatly improved. Not to mention, the Prince of Zhennan has sent dozens of big boxes as a betrothal gift.
Therefore, those acres of land on the border whose origins are unknown are just given away if they are given away. If they are left in the hands, they will become a hot potato.
However, Zhu Qiyu didn't show anything special about Fan Guang's confession, he just said:
"Now that I know I'm guilty, I can't end it so easily. I will give a decree to the Punishment Department later. You can wait for the summons from the Punishment Department at any time."
At this time, Fan Guang felt a little worried, but after all, he did not do anything wrong and was not afraid of ghosts knocking on his door.
In the end, he still saluted and said.
"I obey your order and thank you for your grace."
Seeing this, Zhu Qiyu nodded and said again.
"There is no need to be afraid. I just said to the Minister that as long as you can take the initiative to report it, you can be exempted from punishment. As long as you tell the truth and are not involved in the crimes of using sergeants to abandon military camps and privately occupy military camps, I will not
It would be too harsh."
Fan Guang stood up carefully.
Immediately, he heard the emperor continue.
"Since there have been many nobles coming and going in your house in recent days, you might as well mention this matter to them more. If they can be as frank as you are to the court and take the initiative to make up for the occupied military camps, I will tell you.
Please forgive me."
This statement was straightforward, but Fan Guang was stunned.
Although the emperor's tone was very gentle, he could hear the emperor's determination from it.
Especially after just knowing the entire plan of the Ministry of War, he immediately understood it.
This is the emperor giving them a chance!
Trying to remedy it now, as long as the generals can make up for it, the emperor may not be held accountable. However, if the land clearing is completed and the court starts to implement the redemption policy, then everything will be irreversible.
Looking at the way Shen Shangshu left just now, we knew that the money spent by the imperial court must be taken back. Not only must it be taken back, but it may be doubled!
From this point of view, if you spit it out first, you might still be able to save the family business, but the problem is.
"Your Majesty has given instructions, and I should do my best. However, it is said that good wealth is hard to give away. If I just give you advice with red lips and white teeth, I am afraid it will not have much effect..."
Fan Guang spoke cautiously, but in the end, he did not dare to continue.
However, the emperor obviously understood what he meant and said calmly.
"Just give me some advice. I will send Shu Liang to help you these days. In addition to managing the marriage, if there is anything else you need help with, you can also discuss it with him."
Shu Liang?
Fan Guang was stunned for a moment, and then he realized what the emperor's real intention was in sending this Dongchang Dajun here.
However, he wanted to say that this didn't seem to solve the problem. After all, even Shu Liang couldn't use any means to these nobles for no reason.
Although Fan Guang is a newly promoted noble, he knows the temperament of this group of people very well. To put it bluntly, he will not shed tears until he sees the coffin, and he will not really give in unless he is forced into a corner.
What's more, Fan Guang knew in his heart how much the nobles were involved in the affairs of the military camp.
Again, the reason why Fan Guang was able to confess so easily was because his rise to power was too short, and he was also cautious and was not deeply involved in the military camp issue.
However, for those noble families with a long heritage, years of accumulation have now become a reminder.
Once you spit it out, the damage to your vitality will be minor. To put it more seriously, losing half of your family property is not an alarmist statement.
You must know that the various expenditures of a large family are very outrageous. This does not mean that your family wealth will always grow.
Moreover, in a noble family that has been passed down for such a long time, it would be embarrassing to meet anyone without ordering something from the bottom of the box.
Therefore, the financial resources that can actually be used are not that much.
And the acres they occupied were not fixed. It was common for them to buy, sell and give them away as favors, and even gave them in dowry.
If you want to spit out all the money to the court, you may have to temporarily buy land at a high price.
It's difficult to persuade them to do this.
He wanted to ask again, but suddenly saw the King of Zhennan next to him winking hard at him. In the end, Fan Guang swallowed his words and said.
"I obey the decree."
So, the emperor nodded with satisfaction and said.
"Relax, the boat will be straight when it reaches the bridge. You just have to do your own thing. Let's stop here for today. You go back first. Uncle, please take leave and say hello to great-uncle for me."
"Yes, I will retire."
King Zhennan, who had already been watching, hurriedly raised his hands and pulled Fan Guang out of the palace.
After finally leaving the palace gate, the fat prince finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Being in front of the Emperor is too stressful!
On the way out of the palace, Fan Guang couldn't hold back and asked.
"Your Majesty, why did you stop me in the palace just now? The military camp is of great importance. If I did something improper and delayed His Majesty's affairs..."
In the final analysis, Fan Guang's thinking on this kind of political issue is relatively simple.
The biggest reason why he wanted to ask clearly was that he was afraid that he might not fully understand something and delay the important affairs of the court.
However, Zhu Huixuan looked at his serious look, sighed and said.
"What are you worried about? Since the emperor has sent someone here, it means that he has made arrangements. You can do it according to your own wishes. If anything goes wrong, Shu Liang will naturally take care of it. Otherwise, what would the emperor ask him to do?"
"oh……"
Governor Fan vaguely felt something was wrong, but he couldn't tell what was wrong, so he could only continue walking out of the palace with his head down.
At the same time, everyone in Wuying Hall left, leaving only Yu Qian.
The monarch and his ministers faced each other, and after a while, Yu Qian said.
"Your Majesty, Governor Fan is right to be worried, so..."
Yu Qian didn't say the next words, but his attitude was already clear.
In fact, it can be seen from this point that there is still a big gap between Fan Guang and civil servants like Yu Qian and Shen Yi politically.
At least, after Chen Yi understood the overall plan of the Ministry of War, his first reaction was that even if the emperor wanted to implement the redemption policy, in the early stages of the reorganization, he would definitely bring in a person with enough weight to sacrifice the flag!
As long as this knife is struck hard enough, what Fan Guang has to do will be much easier.
No one would say these strategies explicitly, but they were all tacitly understood. Unfortunately, Fan Guang still did not participate enough in government affairs. He only saw the emperor's final determination, but not the intermediate strategies.
King Zhennan may have noticed it, but his cautious character prevented him from saying anything unless necessary.
In fact, this is indeed the case. With Shu Liang watching from the side, Fan Guang will not make any mistakes. He can just let nature take its course.
So, the final question now is, who should I choose for this person?