The Red Mansions

Chapter 637 Emperor Chongping: This daughter of mine, the girl is not allowed to stay

Chapter 637 Emperor Chongping: This daughter of mine, the girl is not allowed to stay...

Yamen of Yangzhou Salt Court, official hall

Jia Heng didn't wait long, when he saw an elegant middle-aged man wearing a fourth-grade scarlet gown and a black gauze hat, entering the hall through the curtain from the back hall.

The salt inspectors of the Han Dynasty had no fixed grades, and most of them asked questions as their own officials. Lin Ruhai entered the official career as a first-class official. He first served in the Imperial Academy, then was promoted to a doctor at Lantai Temple, and was finally sent by Emperor Chongping to Lianghuai to inspect salt.

Lantai, Yushitai also, this is the reputation of the people at the time for the capital censor of the Metropolitan Procuratorate.

In other words, Lin Ruhai has the title of Zuoqian Capital Censor of the fourth rank in his job, not only the rank of Censor of the Seventh Rank.

"Uncle Lin is always nice." Jia Heng got up, with a warm smile on his face, looked at Lin Ruhai who was not far away, and greeted him.

Lin Ruhai was worthy of being a first-time candidate, and was later recruited by Duke Xiaorong as his son-in-law. Although he was nearly forty years old, he had a beautiful appearance and extraordinary demeanor, but his cheeks were slightly pale, and he seemed a little sick.

Lin Ruhai was also looking at the young boy in the python suit opposite him at the moment, and saw that he was tall and tall, with sword eyebrows and star eyes, and a clear, shaved face that was too young, but his expression was resolute and heroic, and his eyes seemed to hide the light of the gods. It is easy for people to ignore age, so they feel a little good in their hearts and call out: "Zi Yu."

The two had exchanged letters before, even though they met for the first time at this moment, there was nothing special about it, they stopped after exchanging greetings, led them to the inner hall to talk, and then sat down again, the servants brought fragrant tea.

Lin Ruhai asked: "I saw in the residence newspaper the day before yesterday that the Holy Majesty has ordered Ziyu to be the governor of the River Department. I don't know what is going on at Qingjiangpu in Huai'an Prefecture?"

Huaiyang, Huaixu, and Huaihai are all located in the north of the Yangtze River, with many water conservancy dikes under their jurisdiction, and Yangzhou is next to Gaoyou Lake. If something unexpected happens, it is difficult to be alone.

Jia Heng looked solemn, and said: "I have interrogated the relevant river affairs officials to find out the truth about the dams and gates of the Nanhe River. , to aid workers in danger."

Lin Ruhai nodded and sighed: "Sizhou was flooded, and Jiangzuo was terrified. Recently, there have been some rumors in Yangzhou City. Although there has been no chaos, many grain merchants have already heard the news. Huojuqi, sitting on the ground and raising the price, but with you also in charge of the river affairs, my heart will be at ease."

Jia Heng first extinguished a rebellion that shocked the country in the Central Plains, and then published "Chenhe Shishu", suggesting that the northern provinces should extensively repair water conservancy and rectify river affairs. A scholar must say a word before he is ready and can be a capable official.

Even Zhao Mo, Du Ji and others refused to admit it, but they were silent about Jia Heng's talent, and even members of the Qi Party wanted to use Jia Heng's knife to kill people.

It's just that in their eyes, the more capable an official is, the more heinous he is, flattering the king and corrupting the court... Besides, you are the only loyal minister, direct minister, and virtuous minister in the civil and military affairs of the court?Does it show your ability?

Power is like a cake, if you share more, I will get less.

Jia Heng put down the teacup in his hand, and said softly: "The situation is not very optimistic now, we still need some manpower and materials, everything is just doing our best and obeying the destiny."

Lin Ruhai said: "Ziyu just let go and do what he wants."

Jia Heng changed the subject and asked, "Uncle is here to rectify the salt affairs, is there any progress?"

Mentioning this matter, Lin Ruhai became a lot more serious, and sighed: "There are so many things to do, and I can't do anything. Since last year, the salt merchants, the salt transportation department, the Yangzhou government office, and the Nanjing household department have gathered lawsuits. conclusion."

Jia Heng pondered for a moment, then asked: "Didn't Mr. Qi Ge also go to the south of the Yangtze River?"

The matter of salt affairs is even more difficult than the river course, because it involves some senior officials in Nanjing, and even the palace. It can be said that even if Yang Guochang goes south in person, he may not be able to get it done, and it may be difficult for Qi Kun to open the situation if he goes south.

Lin Ruhai nodded, and said, "Master Qi is in Jinling now, negotiating with the Nanjing Ministry of Household Affairs, and wants to take back the rights of the Nanjing Ministry of Household Affairs' salt release and write-off to the Salt Institute. There have been many disputes over this matter."

Jia Heng said: "This year, the northern provinces are generally affected by disasters, and the tax on land and grain has been exempted. In the north, soldiers will be used. The salt tax should be rectified, so as to fill the country's wealth and not hinder the country's great plan."

The financial expenditure of the Central Plains Rebellion was filled by killing the two fat pigs of Wei and Zheng.

With his help, the Ministry of Internal Affairs has slaughtered two fat pigs of the Sanhe Gang and King Qi and King Zhongshun one after another, which is quite abundant, and even organized a part of the money to support the soldiers and horses of the Beijing camp.

However, the finances of the Ministry of Households are already unsustainable. This is not a normal court's financial revenue and expenditure.

In fact, Yang Guochang did his job. During his time in charge of the household department, the northern provinces were exempted to varying degrees due to the drought in arrears of grain taxes. It is equivalent to the division of bureaucratic groups due to regional interests, which is also the reason why the late Ming Dynasty can survive until now compared with parallel time and space.

Well, it's not yet time to make a conclusion about Yang Guochang's coffin.

Lin Ruhai said worriedly: "The country's finances are in dire straits. I've heard Mr. Qi Ge mention it before. Generally speaking, it's four words to increase income and reduce expenditure. The Lianghuai salt tax can increase by 200 million taels a year, which is a long-term strategy."

The Lianghuai salt tax is only the head of several salt farms in the Han Dynasty. There are also other salt farms such as Changlu. Even Yunnan has well salt. For example, Li Wei in the Yongzheng period was especially good at catching and patrolling salt. Political envoy, then governor of Zhejiang, and later governor of Zhili.

Jia Heng was silent for a moment, then suddenly said: "If there is still no progress, let's wait for the river affairs. The Holy Majesty will send me south to Yangzhou to rectify the salt affairs."

"Ziyu, you want to come to Yangzhou?" Lin Ruhai was slightly startled, a little hard to say.

"Yeah, it will probably be bloody at that time." Jia Heng's eyes were slightly condensed, and his face was a little cold.

Suddenly he thought of Yuan Jichong, the former prefect of Yangzhou, and he could ask the Jinyi Mansion to investigate later, but he always felt that this person was not a kind person.

Lin Ruhai pondered for a moment, then looked at Jia Heng expectantly, and said: "Ziyu can come to Yangzhou, and he should be able to redefine the latitude and longitude and sweep away the evils."

Whether it's him or Qi Kun, they feel powerless in the face of the salt affairs with many conflicts of interest, and only the young man in front of him can do this.

Jia Heng sighed: "After the river affairs are completed, the class teacher will return to Beijing. After the flood fighting in the Beijing camp, we should also return to Beijing."

The soldiers and horses of the Beijing camp have been away for a long time. Although the emperor is not jealous, it has made everyone uneasy after a long time. Moreover, the army soldiers are eager to return, and if they do not return for a long time, resentment will inevitably arise.

After the two finished their official business, they began to discuss family matters. Lin Ruguan asked earnestly, "Yu'er has been in Rongguo Mansion all these years, is it okay?"

Jia Heng said softly: "Sister Lin is fine, she was a little weak in the past, but now she is much better."

Lin Ruhai smiled and said: "I heard Yu'er mentioned it in a letter before, she made Ziyu take a lot of trouble, and even invited the imperial doctor in the palace to take care of her."

This Lin Yanyuan didn't think too much about it, because Jia Heng already had a family, and secondly, he had a vague guess in his heart that it was probably for his own sake.

Because the reason is very simple, at Jia Heng's position, he can no longer simply be regarded as an ordinary boy, but should be regarded as the patriarch of the Jia clan and the minister of the chief minister, with deep meaning hidden in every move.

Ok……

Jia Heng said softly: "Sister Lin has always been weak, and she is alone in Beijing. She misses her relatives and is depressed. She needs to take good care of her body, and my uncle also needs to take care of his health. I have secretly investigated the murder by the thief in Jinyi Mansion. When you have news, tell your uncle."

Lin Ruhai nodded, thinking to himself, taking care of Daiyu is more than half because of himself.

Jia Heng said: "There is one more thing that needs to be explained to my uncle."

Lin Ruhai was surprised when he heard this, and waited for what Jia Heng said.

Jia Heng pondered for a while, and said: "It's about Jia Yucun. He was dismissed because of the Xue family's affairs."

Lin Ruhai said: "Ziyu mentioned it in a letter before, but I didn't expect him to be such a character."

At the beginning, Jia Yucun was Daiyu's private school teacher, and Lin Ruhai wrote a letter of recommendation to take office in Jinling, but Lin Ruhai didn't comment too much, but expressed his attitude face to face, and didn't take this matter to heart.

Jia Heng said slowly: "Uncle, after Jia Yucun lost his official position, he first went to the Zhongshun Prince's Mansion. The Zhongshun Prince's Mansion was not on good terms with my Jia family. Uncle also knew about it. Yucun has turned around and joined the Prince of Qi's Mansion, and now the Prince of Qi's Mansion is the chief bookkeeper, and the King of Qi also has a lot of grudges with me."

Lin Ruhai's complexion changed slightly when he heard the words, a look of concern appeared in his eyes, and he asked, "Why does Zi Yu have grudges with Fan Qi?"

These are all secret matters that have not been mentioned in the letter before. As for King Zhongshun's enmity with the Jia family, Lin Ruhai is naturally well aware of this matter.

Jia Heng briefly explained what happened before, and said: "This matter is because the king of Qi County has no clan, and the palace is well aware of it, so it's not a big deal."

Lin Ruhai's eyes moved slightly when he heard the words, and he fell into deep thought for a moment.

No wonder he is in a high position at such a young age, I'm afraid that this road to Qingyun has encountered many turbulent waves.

"Ziyu, as long as you know what's in your head." Lin Ruhai thought for a while and said.

Such an important minister of military aircraft does not need to mention something himself, it is impossible to say that he...

Jia Heng turned around and stopped mentioning King Zhongshun, and said: "My uncle has been patrolling salt in Yangzhou for many years, and he has made great achievements. After getting rid of the malpractice of salt affairs, he should be able to move to the capital and be listed in the ministry."

Lin Ruhai shook his head and said, "Nowadays, the salt law is changing from the old to the new, and it's almost impossible to move forward. Let's look at it again."

While the two were talking, a servant girl said: "Master, my aunt said that the back kitchen has prepared dinner, and I will serve it later, and please invite Master and Uncle Heng to have dinner."

Lin Ruhai greeted with a smile: "It's so late, Ziyu stays for dinner and talks while eating."

Jia Heng didn't refuse either, and sat down with Lin Ruhai to have a meal, talked for a while, and then left Yangzhou Salt Courtyard.

And as Yongningbo and the cabinet scholar Zhao Mo came to Yangzhou to work, the news that Yongningbo went to Yangzhou Yanyuan Yamen to visit Lin Ruhai also spread like wildfire.

Some relationships were also gradually placed in front of everyone. Lin Ruhai from Yangzhou Salt Institute stood behind a huge figure.

Shenjing Castle, Palace Garden

As night fell, red octagonal palace lanterns lit up under the majestic and majestic palaces, and wreaths and tassels swayed gently in the evening wind.

Daming Palace, side hall, inner study

The figure of female officials and internal eunuchs was reflected on the glamorous floor. After the trial, the middle-aged emperor in a yellow dragon robe frowned and was reading a memorial in his hand.

A few days had passed, and the middle-aged emperor naturally received the memorials from Peng Ye, the censor of the left deputy capital in Qingjiangpu, and Jia Heng's follow-up memorial.

"Governor Gao Bin of Nanhe committed suicide in fear of crime, and a heavy rain in Sizhou turned out all the old people in Hedao Yamen!" Emperor Chongping put down the memorial in his hand and said coldly.

There is no peace of mind in the affairs of the world. The rebellion in the Central Plains will be settled, and the Huanghuai River is flooding. It is unknown whether it will cause floods!

Empress Song, who was ordering a few female officials and preparing dinner, looked slightly startled, with a look of worry floating on her plump and graceful snowy and jade skin.

Because Emperor Chongping had forgotten to sleep and eat these days, and even worried that the delay in disposal would come from memorials, Empress Song had no choice but to ask the female officer to deliver the dinner to the inner study.

"Your Majesty, didn't Ziyu go to the Hedao Yamen?" Empress Song came lightly, with concern in her gentle eyes.

"Zitong, Gao Bin, the governor of Nanhe, committed suicide in fear of crime, and most of the river officials below are a nest of snakes and rats. No one knows that the embankment built by Nanhe is as strong as Ziyu's supervisor, who repaired Donghe." Emperor Chongping said with a serious expression and a worried tone. : "The embankment in Henan is only newly built, but it can stop the flood, and the embankment of the Nanhe River, which the imperial court allocates construction money every year, collapses as soon as it rushes down. You can see the leopard in the pipe!"

Empress Song said in relief: "Your Majesty, don't worry too much. Since Ziyu is in Nanhe, there should be a way."

Emperor Chongping sighed softly: "Although Ziyu is in charge, he did not personally supervise the construction of these embankments. If there is a breach, natural disasters cannot be controlled by manpower."

Speaking of it, I feel a little uncomfortable. There is only one civil and military man in the Manchu Dynasty, and he is fighting fires from north to south.

Turning to look at Dai Quan who was standing beside him, he said, "Send someone to the Jinyi Mansion and the Secretary of General Administration to keep an eye on them. Whenever there is any memorial or secret report from Uncle Yongning, report it immediately without delay."

"Slave obeys the order." Dai Quan hastily responded, and it was not easy to remind Emperor Chongping that this was the third time the emperor issued a similar order today.

As soon as Dai Quan came out of the hall, he saw an inner eunuch walking quickly, holding a box in his hand, he was overjoyed, and went forward to meet him. He heard Jia Heng's melody, hugged the wooden box, folded himself into the hall, He said happily: "Your Majesty, Jinyi Mansion is six hundred miles away and hastened the memorial from Xuzhou."

Open the brocade box and take out a memorial.

Knowing that Emperor Chongping was worried about the situation of the Nanhe River, Jia Heng wrote a memorial to Emperor Chongping when he arrived in Xuzhou, and then wrote a memorial to Emperor Chongping after he went to Huai'an Mansion to rectify the officials of the river. Urgent delivery to Shenjing.

"Bring it." Emperor Chongping took the memorial from Dai Quan, and quickly opened it to read it. As he read the text on it, his frowning brows gradually relaxed.

Seeing the dark clouds dissipating from the emperor's face, Empress Song breathed a sigh of relief, and said, "Your Majesty, what did Zi Yu say?"

A memorial from Ziyu is more effective than ten or a hundred words of comfort from her.

Emperor Chongping's face was a little gentle, and his voice was unconsciously brisk, and said: "Ziyu said that the embankment of the Huaihe River is hard to tell the truth. Due to the urgency of the flood situation, nearly [-] Beijing battalion soldiers have been dispatched to Huaiyang and Huaixu to fight floods and prevent floods. It is also said that the rain in the northern provinces is gradually decreasing. To counteract the floods, and to plead with me, use the Tianzi sword to control the Jiangbei camp, dispatch troops and horses to divide the dikes and dams in the town, and rush to repair dangerous works."

There is no nonsense in Jia Heng's memorials in Xuzhou, they are all dry goods.

He stated to the emperor his plan to go to Qingjiangpu's river rectification strategy, as well as the considerations for why he did so, and gave it to Emperor Chongping in secret.

And the well-organized strategy is undoubtedly more able to soothe a restless heart than the various comforting memorabilia that Emperor Chongping saw.

Asking questions, preparing countermeasures, and giving real-time feedback on progress give people the impression of being reliable and convincing.

When Empress Song heard this, her jade face was happy, her red lips parted slightly, her voice was like a yellow warbler coming out of a valley, and she said with a smile: "Your Majesty, the concubine said that it is enough for His Majesty to use Ziyu to go to Qingjiangpu. He must have a comprehensive plan."

Emperor Chongping sighed, and said: "I also know that he must have a strategy, but he is both calming chaos and regulating rivers, and he is busy on both sides, so he has no leisure for a moment, and he is also a person who is not able to use it in the court."

It really feels easier to use.

"Ziyu is still young, and it's time for him to show his ambitions. Besides, he is also happy to share His Majesty's worries." Empress Song said softly, "However, Ziyu is a bit tired this time. Xianning yesterday The letter that came also said that Ziyu and his fourth brother lived and boarded on the embankment some time ago, rushing to repair the dangerous work, and it was quite hard."

"Well, I know about this matter." Emperor Chongping paused, said softly, and then asked: "Did Xianning say when he will come back?"

Empress Song couldn't help laughing all of a sudden, Liren's beautiful and beautiful face, which was as gorgeous as peaches and plums, seemed like a clear and snowy sky, so bright and beautiful.

Instead, Emperor Chongping was confused for a while.

Empress Song said in a soft and gentle voice: "Xianning said that Chanyue has also passed away, thinking about triumphantly with the army. Your Majesty didn't know that a while ago, Concubine Rong and her concubines were talking about her. It's been almost a month, and even a letter It's all gone."

Emperor Chongping also suddenly realized, his heart was a little complicated for a while, and he said with emotion: "This daughter of mine, a girl is not allowed to stay."

Some of the guilt in my heart has also faded a lot, and my son-in-law should work harder.

"Your Majesty, let's have dinner first. There is Ziyu sitting in Nanhe, so your Majesty should not be too worried." Queen Song said softly.

Emperor Chongping nodded, and his mind settled down.

(End of this chapter)