Chapter 677: Want to make me eat a boomerang? No way!

The Donglin Party is a historical entity, not a vague concept built out of thin air. It is a bureaucratic political collective dominated by Jiangnan literati. At the same time, the Donglin Party is also a cultural phenomenon, the fruit of the Great Ming's two hundred years of cultivating scholars.

The Donglin Party is an important political faction in the late Ming Dynasty, with the core proposition of opposing the Eunuch Party, while taking into account: "Political affairs belong to the six ministries, public opinion is given to the remonstrating officials, and the world will naturally be prosperous." It keeps imperial power in the palace, government affairs are presided over by the six ministries, and public opinion is given to the opinion baskets; it opposes the Emperor sending mining supervisors to collect money everywhere, advocates releasing the inner treasury to enrich the world's withered trees; advocates loving merchants and benefiting the people, not hindering industry at the top and benefiting the road at the bottom, and abolishing the tax barriers to facilitate the people.

Every year on the third day of the third month, Donglin Party members hold a gathering at the Donglin Academy, known as the Donglin Assembly on the third day of the third month. The organizational form of the Donglin Party is the mentor-student system. People of the time all called it "mentors and students, wallowing in the mire together." Donglin Party members help each other, protect each other, and support each other in cultural and political activities. Other political achievements were not seen, but this "liking the same and hating the different," "forming cliques and attacking others," had brilliant results.

The activities of the Donglin Party mainly unfolded with lectures at the center of the Donglin Academy. The Donglin Academy both lectured and discussed politics, mainly criticizing current events and putting forward criticisms of the country's specific government affairs, and secondarily advocating integrity, boasting of being a pure stream, and clamoring for various seemingly wonderful but definitely impossible-to-execute government decrees, thereby attracting students, forming a combined force, and influencing political decisions.

For example, what Gao Panlong likes to advocate most is "releasing the inner treasury to enrich the world's withered trees," excessively exaggerating the scale of the inner treasury, exaggerating the wealth of the inner treasury to the scale of tens of millions of taels of silver, and pinning all the crimes of the world on the Emperor. But when Lin Fucheng said it really had to be executed, Gao Panlong was afraid instead.

Many people think that the Donglin Party is a group of literati who are eager to serve the country and are a bit too impatient. In political struggles, they showed integrity, bravery, firmness, and resilience. For the sake of so-called ideals, for the sake of so-called correcting wrongs, for the sake of so-called putting imperial power in a cage, they were fearless and viewed death as returning home.

Are they really viewing death as returning home? On the list of Donglin Party members formulated by Wei Zhongxian, at the time of the Ming and Qing transition, how many people, like Qian Qianyi, felt the water was too cold and the scalp itched, and surrendered to the Qing Dynasty?

As for boasting of being a pure stream, Qian Qianyi married the prostitute Liu Rushi. How many Jiangnan literati lingered in the brothels on the Qinhuai River? This is definitely not a pure stream. Liu Rushi was a proper prostitute background, a top beauty played by a merchant, and they all treated her like a treasure and married her home!

Pure reputation is an evaluation standard for family honor and personal morality. Labeling oneself as a pure stream and liking to visit brothels, Jiangnan literati absolutely cannot be called a pure stream. Qian Qianyi is not the only one. There is also Mao Pijiang, who married the famous Jiangnan prostitute Dong Xiaowan.

Many people in later generations regard the failure of the Donglin Party's political activities as a tragedy, thinking that the tragedy of the Donglin Party is the tragedy of the era. And the Donglin Party that Zhu Yijun saw felt that their appearance was the tragedy of the era. A group of literati who had no political foresight, lacked basic governing ability, were good at forming cliques and attacking others, and could become the mainstream of the literati was the greatest sorrow.

The destruction of the Great Ming had reasons in all aspects.

But the party members in the late Ming who were obsessed with party struggle, including the Donglin Party members, all had historical crimes that could not be shirked.

And the Wanli Emperor, who did not stop factionalism and even deliberately indulged it, taking power and heart as the priority, wanting party members to check and balance each other, also had historical crimes that could not be shirked. Of course, the Wanli Emperor who liquidated Zhang Juzheng, drove away Qi Jiguang, and abolished the Capital Battalion also had no means to stop factionalism.

Didn't have that strength.

"Gao Panlong, right? Are you twenty-something this year?" Lin Fucheng, after Gao Panlong admitted defeat, sat down and asked a question that was off-topic.

"Twenty-two years old." Gao Panlong took a deep breath and said.

Lin Fucheng took a deep breath and said: "There is a smell on you, the smell of an old thing. It's not old in age, but old in heart."

"It's like those old wealthy men wandering in the hutongs of the Northern Capital, holding a birdcage in their hands, holding two walnuts, turning them non-stop, pointing fingers and shouting wherever they go. They wear strings around their necks and hands, and there is always a small room at home as a Buddha hall, with a big-bellied Maitreya Buddha, and they don't open the windows. The sandalwood smell plus the incense smell makes people dizzy. They look like they are worshiping Buddha, but they haven't read a single Buddhist scripture."

"There are a few words hanging on the wall, mostly 'Pengcheng Qianli,' 'Ningjing Zhiyuan,' 'Tiandao Chouqin,' 'Houde Zaiwu.' What they like most are rotten root carvings, fake gold and stone, fake rare books, and purple clay pots. Most of these purple clay pots are fake."

"Stubborn, paranoid, only believing, only trusting that they are right. But when they do something, they are timid and afraid, dare not try, like to talk to people, and when they talk, they talk about how great they were in the past, but in fact, look closely, there is nothing to say, and there is nothing great."

"Do you know what this smell is like?"

"The smell of decay, decay, death. You are only twenty-two years old, and I smell the same smell on you as those old wealthy men."

Gathering is a very common political discussion in the late Ming Dynasty. The national strength of the Great Ming is constantly weakening, like firewood placed on a raging fire. Everyone sees that there is a problem, so it is so common. And finally, the gathering formed party members, factionalism.

And in the gathering, few people like Lin Fucheng scold people so directly, and not a single dirty word is used here, but the person is scolded to the point of being ashamed, wishing to find a crack in the ground to drill into.

"You!" Gao Panlong patted the table and stood up, his face red and ears red, pointing at Lin Fucheng, but there were no more words to refute. When he denied his own proposition of releasing the inner treasury, he was bound to face this kind of humiliation. This is the price of losing the gathering.

"The most ridiculous thing is that what you said, His Majesty has already done." Li Zhi put down the teacup calmly and said: "From the second year of Wanli to the end of the ninth year of Wanli, the inner treasury, national treasury, Chu Party, and Jin Party invested 37.12 million taels of silver in the Southern Capital and Nanyang. It is precisely because of so much silver investment that we have the shipyards, weaving bureaus, cotton mills, iron smelting offices, etc., that we have seen today, and the five major shipping offices and four major governor's offices."

"And on the other hand, in June of the thirteenth year of Wanli, the road from Kaifeng Prefecture to Jiayu Pass began construction. The construction period is nine years. That's right, the budget exceeded 30 million silver, and this is just a budget. With the various difficulties encountered in the promotion, it needs to be added."

"You know nothing about His Majesty's frugality!"

"You are just imagining out of thin air that His Majesty's inner treasury has tens of millions of taels of silver, imagining out of thin air that His Majesty is just a Pixiu who only enters and does not exit, imagining out of thin air that the wealth of the Great Ming has all become the private property of one family. You shot the arrow first and then drew the target. When it hit, you said to everyone: 'I hit, I hit.' It's the same ridiculous."

"Your behavior is ridiculous, and your supporters, those who believe in you, are equally ridiculous."

Li Zhi's criticism was more direct. Li Zhi used objective facts to slap Gao Panlong's face twice. All the logic of releasing the inner treasury was based on a false fact, which would make people laugh.

"Are you trying to release the inner treasury? You just want to put the silver of the inner treasury into your own pockets." Lin Fucheng drank tea and gave Gao Panlong a critical hit plainly, explaining the purpose of his clamor clearly.

Money always flows to places where it is not needed. This is the number one problem of distribution. Gao Panlong opens his mouth and says release the inner treasury, but this silver of the inner treasury, under layers of exploitation, reaches the soldiers' hands, and the soldiers probably have to owe these powerful and wealthy families silver.

Therefore, the Emperor is so obsessed with building roads. Only when the roads are repaired can the merchants' goods in the world pass through, can the basic economic structure of the Great Ming change, can the small-scale peasant economy transform into a commodity economy, can more people read books, and power will not be held by a small group of people forever.

"Okay, don't talk about other things, let's go back to our topic of stopping offering property and the wind and public opinion of offering property." Li Zhi stopped attacking and started the next round.

"If you offer property, the Great Ming court can openly rob everyone of everything!" Gao Panlong began to state his point of view. The court, the Emperor, and authority are all robbers.

Lin Fucheng immediately asked: "Take whose? Because of fear, you represent everyone. The poor people and laborers have nothing to rob. Confucian scholars like to shape the poor people and laborers into a cunning image, superficially honest but like to lie, stingy, cunning, and fight for a little profit."

"But who turned them into this? It is the powerful and wealthy families who robbed them of all their harvests. In order to live, they have to be like this."

"Exploitation is unreasonable. No matter how much you whitewash it, it is unreasonable."

The propositions of the limited liberal faction and the absolute liberal faction are both based on freedom. And Lin Fucheng believes that exploitation is a shackle, while the absolute liberal faction believes that exploitation is a part of freedom. This is actually the core content of the debate. It seems to be discussing offering property and stopping offering property, but in fact, the essence of the discussion is whether exploitation is reasonable.

"It's simply absurd!" Gao Panlong shook his head repeatedly and said: "Chasing arrears is fine. Stealing public for private, chasing back stolen money is reasonable. But adding a penalty is what intention? What kind of 'bright punishment to help education,' it's just robbery. Why say it so grandly?"

"Powerful and wealthy families cannot keep their own property. Even if these poor people and laborers have it, they will be robbed by the court. If they don't rob now, it's just because they are not hungry."

Gao Panlong said the words in the hearts of the Southern Capital literati. They were afraid of the Emperor who had lost control, so they wanted to put imperial power in a cage. Now the Emperor doesn't rob, it's just because they are not hungry. Once there is a huge deficit, the Emperor who masters violence will kill pigs for the New Year, and they have no violence, so they are pigs waiting to be slaughtered.

Li Zhi waved his hand repeatedly and said helplessly: "But the status quo is that the poor people and laborers don't have it. Even if the weather is good, they have to eat grass. Being able to mix some sweet potato vine leaves with coarse salt is already a bumper year. Their harvest has been taken away. It is a later matter for the court to rob it. The key to the problem is: whether to rob or not, you must have it first."

"The main contradiction at the moment is land data, and labor remuneration is not fair, not what you said about being robbed by the court."

Li Zhi's thinking is very, very clear. Being able to be a pig waiting to be slaughtered is already a kind of luck. The fact is that more than 96% of the Great Ming people don't have this qualification. 10% of the Great Ming people hold more than 80% of the land, and 4% of the people hold more than 50% of the land.

"No one will not be punished if they make a mistake. Is it just spitting out what they ate?" Lin Fucheng sneered at Gao Panlong and said: "Sure enough, it is the smell of decay. After talking for a long time, isn't it the same old set? Still fantasizing about 'punishment does not go up to the doctor,' and publicly asking for the privilege of not being punished for making mistakes."

"Is there no one?" Gao Panlong's mouth twitched. He found that these two guys were too difficult to deal with. He took a deep breath and said: "You said no one will not be punished if they make a mistake. What about the people in the sky who are high above? Who will punish them?"

"You want to say the Emperor, right? Timid guy, you don't even dare to say these two words." Li Zhi smiled. Lin Fucheng returned to the capital from Suiyuan Guihua City and shared the Emperor's own romantic affairs in front of the Emperor! At that time, Li Zhi's two legs were shaking, thinking he was definitely going to die.

But His Majesty didn't care much about this matter. If it is beneficial to the civilization of Suiyuan, a little romantic affair doesn't matter.

The gathering in the Northern Capital is very bold. The Emperor is not a topic that cannot be touched. The Southern Capital is even bolder, but after the Emperor is in the Southern Capital and shows violence, the literati of the Southern Capital lose their courage.

Even the name dare not be mentioned. In fact, there is nothing that cannot be mentioned. The Great Ming Emperor is a reasonable person. He is sitting in the Heaven-class private room. As long as what is said is reasonable, there will be no thunderous anger.

"Yes." Gao Panlong was somewhat unwilling, and expressed his meaning in a low voice, wanting to say but not daring.

"You are wrong. Being in the officialdom, this Niehai, anyone who loses the fight needs to pay the price." Li Zhi said with a solemn face: "Do you think His Majesty's southern tour went smoothly for no reason?"

Li Zhi reminded Gao Panlong that the Emperor Shizong who toured the south last time had fires all the way south. Going forward, Emperor Wuzong toured the south and fell into the water, and his life was gone.

Political struggle has always been cruel, and the Emperor is no exception. Even in the class theory, Zhang Juzheng listed the Emperor as a high-ranking exclusive class, but in fact, the Emperor is still a hereditary official class.

Officials cannot escape, and the monarch cannot escape either.

Gao Panlong took a deep breath, closed his eyes and thought for a while before saying: "The poverty of the poor people and laborers is all because they are not striving. They need to work harder, be more diligent, to become rich, instead of being trapped in poverty!"

Lin Fucheng's brows furrowed, tilted his head and said with some disbelief: "Do you mean that the reason why the poor are poor is because they are too bad themselves, which leads to poverty?"

Gao Panlong said very affirmatively: "They are lazy, they are cunning, they steal and play tricks, they even steal! In a free market, there will always be a fair price for everyone! They are poor, not because we made them poor, but because their own price in the market is like this!"

Li Zhi sighed and said helplessly: "This market is neither free nor fair. Labor and labor time have become a commodity, and the interests are cruelly exploited by the meat-eaters. Without fairness, where does freedom come from?"

This gathering has reached this point, and it is already half a sentence too many.

Gao Panlong and Lin Fucheng, Li Zhi, who is right? Actually, there is no right or wrong, it depends on the position.

Lin Fucheng and Li Zhi sympathize with the poor people and laborers. Their theory of freedom is aimed at everyone, and everyone can become a saint. And the freedom clamored by Gao Panlong and these Jiangnan literati is aimed at meat-eaters.

"Your Majesty, we have to go. There is an unexpected situation. They are striking. Should we return to the Nanhu Villa first?" Feng Bao whispered in the Emperor's ear. He had just received news from a small eunuch that the craftsmen suddenly started to take to the streets.

Zhu Yijun nodded and stood up, suddenly came back to his senses, looked at Feng Bao and asked: "You said there was a situation? Striking?"

"Yes." Feng Bao knew that the Emperor's fun-watching addiction was committed, and immediately said: "Your Majesty, this time the battle is a bit big, should we go back first?"

"Big battle is good! Find me a safe place to watch the fun." Zhu Yijun didn't intend to cause trouble for the Embroidered Uniform Guards, so he chose to find a safe place to watch the fun.

Feng Bao said with a difficult look: "Your Majesty, should we return to the Nanhu Villa first? At the moment, there are only two hundred Embroidered Uniform Guards in Fuxi Building. Your subject is worried about problems."

"Two hundred Embroidered Uniform Guards are enough. Two hundred Embroidered Uniform Guards are enough for me to pierce through Nanjingcheng." Zhu Yijun looked at Feng Bao. The more Feng Bao persuaded, the less he wanted to leave.

There is something in this.

In the case of the Tang Hongyuan Dyeing Workshop in Chongyi Square, Shanghai County, the craftsmen and workshop owners made trouble. The Great Ming court's final disposal favored the craftsmen. Since then, because of the labor-capital contradiction caused by the inflow of silver in the Southern Capital, there was a precedent. When wages were not given, or wages were not enough, this strike naturally increased.

Fuxi Building has five buildings. The five-story building in the due north direction can be completely closed. Zhu Yijun went directly to that building, looking down from a high position to watch the fun.

The workshop that made trouble this time was not a dyeing workshop, nor was it any kind of work, but thousands of craftsmen of all kinds came to the street. Zhu Yijun watched for a while and noticed something wrong. The craftsmen all gathered in front of Fuxi Building.

By this time, Zhu Yijun finally tasted the flavor. This is aimed at me!

"I knew it was aimed at me, so you want me to leave quickly?" Zhu Yijun looked at Feng Bao and asked with some doubt.

"Since Your Majesty arrived in the Southern Capital, there have been people who wanted to cry for the carriage. Li Le and Hence Hai Rui handled a part of it, and it was not improper disposal, but the problem is that there are too many people. Your subject heard the news that someone said Your Majesty was in Fuxi Building, so the craftsmen rushed over." Feng Bao didn't dare to deceive the Emperor and told the truth.

Zhu Yijun took a deep breath. He probably guessed the origin of the matter, but the origin of the matter is not important. Now handling the matter in front of him is the most important. He nodded and said: "Good coming."

"Your Majesty, should we avoid it?" Feng Bao still felt that continuing to stay here was really too dangerous. The crowd was excited. Once someone took action, intensified the contradiction, the situation would be absolutely uncontrollable. At that time, the trouble would be big.

It is not dangerous, because of extorting pay, the Capital Battalion is in the city.

As long as His Majesty leaves Fuxi Building, even if there is really a bloody conflict, it will not affect His Majesty's holiness.

"Organizing these craftsmen to come before me, the bad guys behind them, just want to see me make a fool of myself. They just want to see me return to the Nanhu Villa in a mess. Rebellion is not dare, clamoring for wind and public opinion, can't argue with the pens I raised. These meat-eaters in the Southern Capital don't want to force the palace, let alone force me to submit. They just want me to eat a boomerang." Zhu Yijun said with a smile.

The Emperor's Nanhu Villa is an imperial palace. Around the imperial palace, all are their eyes and ears. It is not that they want to do anything, but they want to know what the Emperor has done to prevent any unexpected accidents.

Micro-service private visits are just a performance that should be coordinated but not seen.

After all, the Southern Capital is not the Northern Capital. The meat-eaters in the Northern Capital actually know it, but they tacitly didn't disturb the Emperor's interest.

In the case of the Tang Hongyuan Dyeing Workshop, the Great Ming Emperor stood for the poor people and laborers. Now it is time to let the Emperor know what kind of influence it has caused, personally face these angry craftsmen, and also experience their bitterness, and let the Emperor recognize early that the Emperor is also a ruling class, a meat-eater, and one of the enemies of the poor people and laborers.

The Emperor can get out at any time. Everyone knows this. The meat-eaters in the Southern Capital just want to see the Emperor return in a mess, but Zhu Yijun refuses to fulfill their wishes and just won't leave.

Want to make me eat a boomerang? No way!

"Your Majesty." Feng Bao still wanted to persuade with a difficult look. The Great Ming raised so many officials, His Majesty doesn't need to go down to the mud pit himself.

Zhu Yijun waved his hand and said with a smile: "I am not afraid of the Great Ming people. Do you see? When the craftsmen came, they were all empty-handed. Two hundred Embroidered Uniform Guards in Fuxi Building are enough to ensure my safety. Look over there, those are the yamen runners of Ying Tian Prefecture. Even if I don't go out in this five-story building, I am the strong side."

"This kind of excitement, the more you cover it up, the bigger the thing."

"Should we invite the Hai Zongxian Hai?" Feng Bao asked tentatively.

Hence Hai Rui's signboard in Nanjing is too loud. As long as Hence Hai Rui is there, no matter how big the scene is, it won't be chaotic. The gathered craftsmen obviously have some demands. As long as there are demands, Hence Hai Rui can appease the excited people. Hence Hai Rui's promise is very recognized by the people in the Southern Capital.

"Invite him. But it is also to invite Hai Zongxian Hai to be a witness. I will handle it personally." Zhu Yijun didn't care much and said: "Open the door, let the Embroidered Uniform Guards put away the long and short weapons, don't hurt the craftsmen."

"Zhao Mengyou, you go down now, let the craftsmen outside the door find three people who can speak, and wait outside the door. I will go and see personally in a while."

"Your subject obeys the order." Feng Bao saw that he couldn't persuade him, so he still obeyed the order. He sent a small eunuch to invite Hence Hai Rui and Qi Jiguang.

"Your Majesty, General Qi has arrived." Zhang Hong ran to the Emperor hurriedly and whispered the specific situation. Zhu Yijun's brows furrowed, and then relaxed.

When the Emperor and the craftsmen's heads met, a bloody incident occurred. Fortunately, the Capital Battalion and yamen runners were there, and there were no more serious casualties.

"If no one dies, it's not a problem. Since they dare to clamor for the craftsmen to come to Fuxi Building, they must be prepared to pay the price. Pass my edict, let the yamen runners release the people." Zhu Yijun made specific instructions to Zhang Hong, and then explained to the three craftsmen what had happened.

"Just now, a small thing happened on the street. Some house slaves of the workshop owners intended to disguise themselves as craftsmen and attack the yamen runners, wanting to stir up the water and fish in troubled waters. This shot was fired, but they were caught on the spot by the craftsmen. Everyone, this hand of mine is a hand for farming, all calluses. These house slaves don't work, and they were recognized at a glance."

"Good guy, that scene, they fought immediately. The yamen runners finally separated these people, and these house slaves were beaten with bruised noses and swollen faces."

Zhu Yijun's hands were all calluses, and even somewhat deformed. The palm prints were also relatively deep, and there were some scars. The scars were mainly from practicing martial arts, accidentally injured, practicing martial arts bumping and rubbing, all normal. Zhu Yijun also had chilblains, which were frozen when he went to see the ice harvesting on the Yongding River last winter, personally harvesting ice.

The house slaves were sent to the Huimin Pharmacy to see their injuries, and the yamen runners arrested the craftsmen who beat people. A violent emotion was spreading. Zhu Yijun chose to release the people. This was a group incident and could not be discussed as fighting. But if it was not handled in time, this violent emotion would be even more intense, which was contrary to Zhu Yijun's original intention of personally coming forward to appease the people.

The four things the craftsmen were most concerned about, His Majesty gave three promises, and also gave a time limit. There was one thing, His Majesty recorded it in a small notebook.

The craftsman who had been silent, looked left and right, and still said with a difficult look: "Your Majesty, your subject still has one thing, I beg Your Majesty to make the decision. This Hai Zongxian Hai said, summarizing the tax and labor of a county, measuring land and calculating households, all collected in silver, handled by officials, and hired labor to pay. That is to say, labor apportionment is apportioned to the land. Songjiang Prefecture pushed the One Whip Law, and later the Southern Capital was also pushing it."

"If your subject didn't understand wrong, is it that we craftsmen without land don't have to pay this labor silver?"

"Correct." Zhu Yijun's brows furrowed, very affirmatively.

The One Whip Law is like this. The labor of a place is all counted into the land. When labor is needed, hire people to pay. This is the original face of the One Whip Law. The One Whip Law is the transformation from physical tax to currency tax, and it is also putting all the various labor services into the land.

"But why do we craftsmen without land also have to pay this difference silver? It has been seven mace of silver a year." This craftsman asked boldly.

"I have never said that I want to collect four difference silver from people without land." Zhu Yijun sat straight, looked at the craftsman and asked with some doubt: "Someone is carrying my dragon flag and asking for this money?"

The craftsman hurriedly said: "Hmm, they said it was imperial grain. Seven mace of silver can buy two shi of rice, enough for a child to eat for a year."

"I have never asked anyone to collect it." Zhu Yijun said very solemnly: "The One Whip Law was originally a method proposed by Gui E to solve the people's distress in labor. It has been so many years. It seems that there is a problem in the execution. Besides this difference silver, what other money do you have to pay?"

"Yes!" The craftsmen also realized that this silver was 90% not in the Emperor's pocket, and someone was playing tricks.

There is a word called "acting as a tiger's accomplice," which is the ghost of a person killed by a tiger, attracting people to the tiger's territory to be killed by the tiger. And the Great Ming court is the tiger, and the powerful and wealthy families, gentry and wealthy families, yamen runners, and cruel officials are all accomplices.

But now, the craftsmen realized in a trance that the tiger didn't have such a big appetite!

This pair of accounts is not known, and one pair of accounts is scared. Zhu Yijun only then knew that there were so many taxes on the craftsmen!

These craftsmen can only move in the outer city. Every time they enter Nanjingcheng, they have to pay five wen for the city entry fee every day. They have to pay every day. This five wen is deducted from the wages. Of course, they can also pay at the city gate themselves. The craftsmen pay the full amount. The craftsmen guess that the meat-eaters may pay less.

Reed, tea, and mines are all taxed. The Great Ming people store coal and grass besides storing coal. After drying in autumn, they spread it on the bed and cover it on the body to keep warm. And reeds are the best grass. When buying grass, they store grass in the market, and they have to pay money to the yamen runners sitting in front of the market. Mine tax is mainly on the mine, gold, silver, iron, copper, lead, tin, mercury, alum, cinnabar, etc., all have to be paid, and no physical objects are accepted, only silver.