Chapter 814: Let the Marquis of Ningyuan Compensate Him One Wen

Li Chengliang had just returned to the capital when he did two things. The first was to go to Tonghe Palace to pay his respects to the Emperor, which was the proper duty. The second was to go to the Great Teahouse and give Zhao Nanxing a sound thrashing.

Zhao Nanxing was in no state to be seen by anyone. The regular gatherings could no longer be held, and in all likelihood, no one would ever go to listen to them again.

Inside and outside the capital, there was an uproar. How could Li Chengliang, a crude martial man, beat a renowned Confucian scholar like Zhao Nanxing? It was simply an insult to the literati!

After the initial uproar, people discussed it in the streets and alleys for a while, and that was that. There were no further consequences.

Not a single editor of the miscellaneous gazettes wrote an article criticizing Li Chengliang for being lawless. Nor did any censor take advantage of the two days remaining before the New Year to submit a memorial scolding Li Chengliang for beating someone. The Marquis of Ningyuan had come straight from Tonghe Palace to the Great Teahouse to beat the man; whose intention this beating really was, went without saying.

It was obvious that Zhao Nanxing had taken this beating for nothing. Li Chengliang had beaten base scholars as soon as he returned to the capital before; after a few more times, everyone would get used to it.

Zhao Nanxing was unpopular; even the scholar-official class looked down on him. The Imperial Army's aid to Korea to quell the chaos was upright and righteous, yet this Zhao Nanxing had criticized the Imperial Army for destroying the Japanese, claiming it was "waging war to harm the people" and "abandoning the state in danger." Such absurd arguments, while he still boasted of the integrity of a straightforward official, were something even the scholar-officials could not agree with.

After all, the Great Ming of today, from any angle, was still the Celestial Empire. There were not that many base scholars who had grown accustomed to kneeling until their knees had taken root.

The capital was joyfully preparing for the New Year, while the Emperor of Ming had successively gone to Nanhaizi to visit the families of the beacon tower marquises and coastal defense inspectors; gone to the Northern Camp to see the clan members in the Ten Kings' City; and issued another batch of New Year silver at Wu Ying Tower—though the elite soldiers of the Capital Camp only received one silver dollar each, enough to buy about a hundred catties of pork. He had also inspected the New Year fire prevention measures at the Xishan Coal Bureau and the Yongsheng Woolen Mill, met with the craftsmen, and inquired about the labor unions promoted by Wang Jiaping.

Wang Jiaping believed that labor unions should be established on the foundation of fully mechanized workshops and craftsmen who were generally literate and understood reason.

But there was a paradox here: most craftsmen who had their children educated were unwilling to let them stay in the workshops. Those who could stay were few and far between; the work in the workshops was very tiring and heavy, and not decent enough.

The labor unions still had a long way to go, and the road was difficult and arduous, but they had already made substantive progress. At least the distribution of excess profits had to be publicly announced, and where the money was specifically spent had to be disclosed. It could be considered another small step forward.

On the twenty-fifth day of the twelfth lunar month, the Emperor of Ming met with external officials, elders, and commoners at the Huangji Gate. Nearly a thousand randomly selected commoners from all walks of life were summoned to the Huangji Gate to face the Emperor, and in the corridors to the left and right of the gate, they wrote down the matters they were most concerned about.

The palace corridors record the people's thoughts; the red steps inquire about the laws of governance.

Since the second year of Wanli, when Zhang Juzheng wanted to slightly restore the ancestral laws and let the Emperor meet with external officials, this system had been executed very well. As the Emperor, Zhu Yijun had never missed a day.

Zhu Yijun would look over each of these more than a thousand memorials one by one,

and when work resumed on the sixth day of the coming year, he would send them to the Grand Secretariat for disposal.

Of course, this system inevitably developed some degree of formalism. Most of the memorials were merely sycophantic flattery singing praises, or were written by others, or the authors were too afraid to express their own opinions. Most memorials were meaningless, but as long as one reflected the hardships of the common people, it was a victory for the system.

The Great Ming was developing with each passing day, and some problems that had not been anticipated at all were troubling the people. For example, public security problems caused by free migration: some habitual offenders roamed around committing crimes, and because of the regional nature of the arrest warrants, heinous criminals would commit crimes here and secretly hide there.

Inquiring about governance at the red steps could be considered a continuation of the Han Dynasty's "Gongche Minister" system. At least there was an opening that allowed the Emperor to hear the voices of the myriad people, even if it was only a crack.

It was always so difficult for the feelings of those below to reach those above. Zhu Yijun was very willing to understand the people's clothing, food, housing, and transportation. The dwellings outside the Zhaoyang Gate did not represent universality; the dwellings outside the Zhaoyang Gate were already the lives that some rural commoners dreamed of, even if they were still very difficult.

"Your Majesty, the Teacher has arrived." Zhang Hong walked in from outside the door and bowed his head, saying.

Zhu Yijun put down the vermilion brush in his hand and said, "Invite him in quickly."

"Your subject pays respects to Your Majesty. May Your Majesty be well." Zhang Juzheng bowed his head to pay his respects.

"No need for formalities. Sit, sit, sit. The court is already on holiday, why has the Teacher come suddenly?" Zhu Yijun had Zhang Hong brew a cup of good tea and asked with some curiosity.

Zhang Juzheng looked at the memorials that had been sorted and categorized, feeling slightly emotional that His Majesty had not been idle even during the New Year.

The court was already on holiday, and except for the duty offices, everyone was resting, but His Majesty was still dealing with piles upon piles of memorials. Zhang Juzheng held his hands and said with a slightly solemn expression, "Your Majesty has not yet rested, so your subject dare not be slack."

"The 'Book of Documents' says: 'Imperial Heaven has no favorites, it only assists the virtuous.' Your Majesty is diligent in governance, reviewing memorials by the light of the moon, and does not stop handling the myriad affairs even in the cold of winter. This is the great fortune of the state. However, the state's power is not built in a day, so I ask Your Majesty to slightly release the labor of the desk."

Zhang Juzheng was known in the court for his strictness, but seeing His Majesty refusing to rest even during the New Year, he still offered two words of advice, urging him to pay attention to the balance between work and rest.

Zhu Yijun smiled and said, "I am young and full of energy. Besides, being idle is still being idle; it's just reading a few memorials, it doesn't matter."

Seeing that he could not be persuaded, Zhang Juzheng reflected on whether he had been a bit too forceful during the lectures, but things had reached this point, and it was already of no use.

Zhang Juzheng put aside his thoughts and said, "Your subject comes for the memorial of Hou Yuzhao. His 'Six Strategies for Pacifying the Borders'—the first strategy is to set regulations to clarify duties. This Capital Agricultural Reclamation Bureau should be directly under the Ministry of War and listen to the dispatch of the Ministry of Revenue. A Grand Coordinator with the authority to hold the seal should be appointed. Your subject recommends Zhang Xueyan to hold the seal and be the Grand Coordinator."

"Firstly, Zhang Xueyan entered the court from Liaodong to be the Minister of Revenue and is extremely familiar with Liaodong affairs. Secondly, he has been in the court for nine years and has audited accounts without error. Thirdly, Minister Wang

is old and weak, his energy is insufficient, and he has privately communicated with your subject, intending to retire and recuperate."

These were two matters: Zhang Xueyan becoming the Grand Coordinator holding the seal, and in addition, the matter of Zhang Xueyan entering the Grand Secretariat.

"The Teacher's meaning is that a Grand Secretary should hold the seal and coordinate Liaodong military reclamation?" Zhu Yijun pondered slightly and understood Zhang Juzheng's intention.

According to Hou Yuzhao's plan, originally a Vice Minister of Revenue would have been enough to be the Grand Coordinator holding the seal, but Zhang Juzheng had previously felt that the official rank was too low and feared it would be inappropriate. The more he thought about it, the more he felt it was not right, so he brought the snow with him to Tonghe Palace to present it to the Emperor.

Wang Guoguang was old, and the empire's chief accountant could finally no longer hold on and was about to leave the career for which he had struggled his whole life.

But fortunately, when he left, he was still full of hope for the restoration of the Great Ming.

"Your Majesty, there are 450,000 qing of wasteland in Liaodong. According to the 'Six Strategies for Pacifying the Borders,' next year, a large number of commoners from Shanxi, Northern Zhili, and Shandong will migrate to Liaodong. Within ten years, the reclaimed land in Liaodong will likely exceed one million qing. The land in Liaodong is fertile, and its annual grain production could at least account for one-eighth of the Great Ming's total grain production, or even more. It is an out-and-out granary."

"This matter is of great importance and must be taken seriously." Zhang Juzheng explained his reasons. This official holding the seal had to be a high-ranking official; a low-ranking one would not do.

The north was generally short of grain. If Liaodong could be thoroughly developed, that would be extraordinary. The grain shortage in the north could be greatly alleviated, especially the grain shortage in the capital; there would be no need to take grain from arid regions like Shanxi, Shaanxi, Gansu, and Suiyuan, and it could even provide support in return.

Only by alleviating the general grain famine in the northwest could the Great Ming's Wanli Reform be considered to have laid a solid foundation, and only then could it go further.

"The Teacher's considerations are comprehensive. Indeed, the matter of Liaodong is of great importance and does require a Grand Secretary to hold the seal." Zhu Yijun recognized Zhang Juzheng's reasons. The Northeast had far more than one million qing of fertile land, and far more than one-eighth of the Great Ming's total production. If it were truly developed well, the thousand-mile fertile fields of the Northeast could produce one-fifth of the grain, which could greatly alleviate the grain famine in the north.

Zhang Juzheng attached great importance to Hou Yuzhao's memorial. He felt that this memorial could be ranked alongside the two most important new policies of the fifteenth year of Wanli. The fifteenth year of Wanli determined many new policies to be implemented later, such as the Official Selection Law, the Golden Story, the Dinghai Academic System, the World Ming Pavilion, the Sunset Plan, and so on.

The two most important things here were the Official Selection Law and the Dinghai Academic System, and the Liaodong Agricultural Reclamation Bureau was just as important as the previous two.

The Return of Land Decree and the Single Whip Law were long-term goals. Zhang Juzheng felt that if he could see the deep implementation of the Return of Land Decree and the Single Whip Law on the day he passed away, he could die without regrets.

The Single Whip Law was still dormant because Zhang Juzheng discovered that with the Great Ming's massive scale, the quantity of metal currencies like red copper, silver, and gold was simply too small to support the operation of the Single Whip Law. Only when the Golden Story was told well could the Single Whip Law have a foundation for implementation.

Zhang Juzheng regarded this matter as very important, willing to brave the heavy snow and the New Year holiday to have a deep talk with

His Majesty, to understand His Majesty's true thoughts so that he could push forward the decrees. He needed to know clearly whether His Majesty valued Liaodong so much just to appease the Marquis of Ningyuan returning to the capital, or if he truly valued the transformation of Liaodong through the King's influence.

Through discussing the "Memorial on the Six Strategies for Pacifying the Borders" with His Majesty, Zhang Juzheng clearly knew that His Majesty truly valued the transformation of Liaodong.

"Teacher, no matter how many plantations there are overseas, they are still overseas. This Liaodong is right at our doorstep. If it is truly reclaimed, it can leave a legacy for the Great Ming for fifty or even a hundred years. Entering Korea to destroy the Japanese—Korea has many mountains and little land, and Japan has nothing but mineral deposits. Entering Korea to fight is still for the sake of peace in Liaodong." Zhu Yijun stated a very realistic problem.

The place where entering Korea to destroy the Japanese truly made a huge profit was not in Korea, nor in Japan, but in the thousand-mile fertile soil of Liaodong. The Great Ming's current productivity and production relations already had some surplus strength to reclaim Liaodong.

Land at one's doorstep, no matter how little, is never too little. Land overseas, no matter how much, does not actually fully belong to the Great Ming. This was also the reason why Zhu Yijun attached such importance to the development of Han towns. Only when the Han towns grew strong could the Han people in these overseas territories take root.

"Your Majesty, this year's revenue slightly exceeded expectations." Zhang Juzheng brought up the second matter of his visit to the palace. The year-end accounting was finished, and this year's court revenue exceeded expectations by a lot.

Zhang Juzheng sat up straight and handed the memorial to His Majesty, saying, "Land tax converted to silver is 17 million silver, 500,000 silver more than last year, and 500,000 silver less than in the sixth year of Wanli."

"Commercial taxes, official factories, coal and iron tobacco monopolies, customs duties, and so on—the commercial taxes in the fifteenth year of Wanli have reached as high as 23 million silver, with the proportion of commercial taxes exceeding 60%. Among these, the largest increase is in the tobacco monopoly, which increased from a profit of 300,000 silver to 1.5 million silver."

The expectation was actually only 38 million silver in revenue, but after the accounting, it was found that it was only 20,000 silver short of reaching 41 million silver.

Maritime trade was expanding, and customs duties completely returned to the state were increasing year by year with the prosperity of maritime trade. This year, it only increased by less than 400,000 silver, but the tobacco monopoly alone increased by 1.2 million silver.

This 1.2 million silver was the bulk of the amount exceeding expectations.

In the sixth year of Wanli, land tax converted to silver was 18 million taels, which was the peak of land tax during the Wanli period. Since then, it had been maintained between 16 million and 17 million silver. Over these years, the court had not only not increased agricultural taxes but had been constantly reducing and exempting them, especially in disaster years.

If strictly supervised according to the standards of the sixth year of Wanli, the current land tax could be about 20 million silver.

The state had money, so naturally, it would not urge too strictly. Then there would be no intensification of internal contradictions caused by urging. In the final analysis, the Great Ming could now squeeze the colonies to alleviate internal friction.

The growth rate of commercial taxes far exceeded expectations, especially the increase in tobacco revenue.

"This tobacco is all used as medicine." Zhang Juzheng slightly

appeared somewhat helpless. This was a dilemma between morality and finance. Knowing clearly that this was a harmful thing, it was still being sold, and it was a state monopoly.

Because of the different parts and times of taking tobacco leaves, dozens of types of tobacco with different prices were manufactured. Various smoking utensils, tobacco pouches, pipes, and other utensils were also very profitable.

This silver was earned somewhat against one's conscience, but if the court did not monopolize it, there were plenty of people doing this business.

For tobacco, 60% was tax. With such heavy taxes, it still could not stop the popularity of tobacco.

"They are all benefactors of the state." Zhu Yijun knew very well why Zhang Juzheng was helpless. His morality made him feel that this was not good, but the reality of finance made him have to do so.

Reducing taxes to comfort the people, combining virtue and power, opening up sources of wealth, and managing both the root and the branches—the ideal was very full, but the reality was relatively skinny. The court had too many places to spend money. Just for the Dinghai Academic System, he didn't know how much silver it would take to fill it. The Great Ming state was still repairing the post roads, so it could only be like this.

Zhang Juzheng was not a sentimental person, nor did he advocate moral loftiness. He came to Tonghe Palace not to lobby His Majesty to ban tobacco. He just sighed a little and thanked the smokers for their contribution to the state's finance.

Besides the profit from tobacco exceeding expectations, there was also the profit from quinine in Java exceeding expectations.

The price of this thing, even though the production had more than doubled, was still equivalent to gold, and the price in many places had still risen. In this day and age, malaria was extremely common in the south, and when the chills came, it was a life-saving divine medicine.

Speaking of this cinchona tree, it did not grow so well in its place of origin, Peru, but it grew vigorously in Java, which was also a strange thing.

The seeds of the cinchona tree were exchanged by the Portuguese King Antonio, who walked the path of the Governor's wife and exchanged seeds for seeds in the fifth year of Wanli (Chapter 745).

The cinchona tree plantation in Peru actually had low production, but in Java, it was like a fish in water.

"So, demand is far greater than supply. It can be seen that the price of quinine will remain high." Zhu Yijun had no good way. In this day and age, all he could do was let the Governor's Office plant more trees.

Those who sell smiles simply cannot sell as much as those who sell medicine. Selling medicine is indeed profitable.

Zhang Juzheng discussed with His Majesty the change in the Great Ming's tax structure. In Zhang Juzheng's view, the proportion of commercial taxes must be further increased to over 70% for the state's finance to be truly healthy. If it reached over 90%, then the further reduction and exemption of agricultural taxes could be discussed.

"The price of rice in Japan this year has risen four times compared to last year, already 80 wen per catty." After finishing the official business, Zhang Juzheng talked about Japan.

The price of rice in Japan soared, causing such a stir again that even the capital of the Great Ming had heard of it.

"What is the price of rice in the Great Ming?" Zhu Yijun asked about the grain price of the Great Ming. The price of rice varied at different times and in different regions, but the overall grain price of the Great Ming tended to be stable.

Feng Bao took out the memorandum, turned to the place about grain prices,

handed it to His Majesty, and said, "The most expensive is Songjiang Prefecture, where rice costs 5 wen per catty. The Southern Yamen is a bit lower at 3 wen, and the Northern Yamen is 5 wen for two catties."

As the Emperor's internal minister, when His Majesty had doubts, he had to answer for His Majesty.

"Can you buy two catties of rice for 5 wen at the grain market outside Zhaoyang Gate now?" Zhu Yijun looked at Feng Bao and asked.

Feng Bao calmly said, "When the palace servants were purchasing this morning, I specifically asked. Now the grain market outside Zhaoyang Gate has even lowered the price. Everyone has hoarded New Year goods for the New Year, and they can't sell them, so they can only lower it a little."

Feng Bao dared not deceive the Emperor on the matter of grain—grain production, grain prices—because His Majesty truly understood, and His Majesty was very concerned about grain prices.

Zhu Yijun frowned and said, "The price of rice in Japan is thirty to forty times that of the Great Ming. Are there no maritime merchants who disregard the ban, take risks, and ship grain into Japan?"

"Of course there are." Zhang Juzheng said very affirmatively, "Money moves people's hearts. If these maritime merchants were really that law-abiding, they wouldn't be maritime merchants. But after the grain arrives in Japan, it can't be sold at a high price either."

"Your Majesty, Japan is near the sea. Under the Pacific warm current, Japan's climate and precipitation are still quite good. Grain production is not a problem. This is not a natural disaster, but a man-made disaster. It is that someone wants the grain price to be so expensive."

"Great Ming merchants cannot open grain shops in Japan. They also sell the grain to the compradors in Japan."

"These compradors buy it cheaply from Great Ming merchants and then sell it at a high price. The huge profits they obtain are all used to buy luxury goods from the Great Ming—silk, tea, porcelain, inkstones, and seals."

When grain prices are high, the farmers who till the land do not necessarily benefit. When grain prices are low, the farmers who till the land suffer huge losses.

"Grain is expensive, starving the farmers; grain is cheap, hurting the farmers." This is the wisdom of our ancestors for thousands of years. When grain is expensive, the first ones to starve to death are the farmers.

Great Ming merchants discovered that transporting grain there could not yield huge profits, and coupled with the high-hanging imperial bans, they were naturally unwilling to do this kind of business.

"This price hike is mainly to make the civilians of Japan bear the cost of defeat." Zhang Juzheng said very affirmatively, "In the past, the Great Ming also did this."

"During the Gengxu Incident, when Altan Khan invaded, the grain price in the capital rose three times a day. At its highest, one catty of grain was 200 wen, and even then, there was a price but no market. The grain price in Baoding rose to 130 wen."

"When Taizhou Prefecture was in danger of war, the price of rice in the whole of Zhejiang once rose to 4 wen per catty, and Taizhou Prefecture rose to 40 wen."

Zhang Juzheng not only criticized Japan but also criticized the Great Ming. When the Great Ming faced the Northern invaders and the Japanese pirates in the southeast, grain prices fluctuated greatly, and the commoners suffered unspeakably.

The price of rice is the barometer of war. Civilians in the rear, limited by restricted news channels, cannot understand the full picture of the war at the front. They cannot understand the war reports or the battle lines, but commodity prices are matters by their side.

How the war situation is can be reflected in the price of rice. The cost of defeat

is always borne by the civilians. This is the same throughout history and across the world.

"Wait a moment, Teacher, wait a moment. You said that when Taizhou Prefecture was in an emergency, the grain price in Zhejiang rose to 4 wen per catty. Then what about when there were no Japanese pirate troubles?" Zhu Yijun frowned and asked for the details.

Zhang Juzheng explained, "Three wen for two catties. When General Qi guarded Taizhou, after the Japanese pirates retreated, it returned to three wen for two catties."

"In other words, the current price of rice in Songjiang Prefecture is even more expensive than the price of rice in Zhejiang when it was in danger of war!" Zhu Yijun grasped the key point. The commodity prices in Songjiang Prefecture were too terrifying; one catty of rice cost 5 wen.

Under the threat of war, the price of rice in Zhejiang was not as high as the current price of rice in Songjiang Prefecture.

Those who didn't know would think that Songjiang Prefecture had been attacked by Japanese pirates!

"The price of rice in Zhejiang at 4 wen per catty was maintained for several months. This price in Songjiang Prefecture has been maintained for more than two years, and I'm afraid it will rise again this year." Zhang Juzheng carefully reminded His Majesty that the commodity prices in Songjiang Prefecture were very stably high!

"The grain price in Songjiang Prefecture must be lowered. At the very least, it cannot rise like this anymore. If it rises again, people will starve to death." Zhu Yijun gave a clear instruction. As the freest place in the Great Ming and the bridgehead of the Wanli Reform, the invisible hand had a stronger influence on the market than the visible hand.

However, grain cannot be speculated on, and prices cannot rise. If they rise, commoners will be starved to death. It's just like the coal in the capital and Liaodong; other things can be speculated to the sky, but coal cannot. The result of soaring coal prices is that commoners freeze to death.

Japan is Japan. Even if the grain price in Japan rises to one tael of silver for one catty, Zhu Yijun is too lazy to care. It would be best if they all starved to death, saving the trouble of reducing the population.

But for Songjiang Prefecture, Zhu Yijun wants to manage it. He wants the court to actively intervene, dispatch grain distribution, and keep commodity prices at a stable upward trend, so as to ensure that the economy has enough vitality while the commoners will not be starved to death.

As for the rest, Zhu Yijun does not intend to manage so much. Excessive interference by administrative power is instead detrimental to the stable and orderly development of the market.

The invisible and visible hands are like the two poles of Yin and Yang. Completely handing it over to the invisible hand is the court's way of shirking responsibility. Completely relying on the visible hand will lead to deformity, bloating, and rigidity, which cannot last long.

The court must play a leading role, managing the main economy and guiding the market.

Zhang Juzheng talked about taxes, and then talked about grain prices, mainly about the negotiation with Japan on mining rights. Gao Qiyu was to leave the Great Ming after the New Year to go to Japan as an envoy. How much more to take needed to be drawn as a reference. The worse the situation in Japan, the more things the Great Ming could get.

"Your Majesty, the Marquis of Ningyuan beat Zhao Nanxing." After finishing the official business, Zhang Juzheng talked about Li Chengliang.

Zhu Yijun smiled and said, "Let him beat him. I told the Marquis of Ningyuan to beat him. He wants to trick me into using the court stick? He can forget about it! What's wrong? What did Zhao Nanxing do again?"

Many scholars deliberately publish some outrageous remarks

and it's not that they don't know the real situation; they are just deliberately trying to trick the court into using the court stick, or rather, tricking the court into using its authority to punish them.

As long as they are restricted by the court, they immediately take on the appearance of victims, shouting "I was right, I poked the court's sore spot" as an honor. Instead, they gather some commoners who don't know the truth to follow suit and make a mess, leaving the place in chaos.

Zhu Yijun does not use the court stick; if he hits, he hits to kill, except for Li Kaifang. Li Kaifang is a scarce talent.

Li Chengliang, as a martial man, doing this kind of thing is just right.

"He went to the Shuntian Dai Fuya to report the case." Zhang Juzheng said with some helplessness, "This Marquis of Ningyuan is a military merit holder and should be tried under the Eight Privileges. The Shuntian Dai Fuya won't handle it and told Zhao Nanxing to go to the Northern Internal Security Division Yamen to report the case, saying this matter doesn't fall under their jurisdiction."

Clan members, civil officials, and military generals who should be tried under the Eight Privileges are all handled by the Northern Internal Security Division, so it was useless for Zhao Nanxing to run to the Shuntian Dai Fuya to report the case and cry for injustice.

"Let's do this: let the Marquis of Ningyuan compensate him one wen for medical expenses." Zhu Yijun rolled his eyes and came up with a good idea.

Humiliation, huge humiliation.

Using one wen to humiliate Zhao Nanxing. Originally, Zhao Nanxing was seeking justice and didn't care about money. Scholars care too much about the smell of copper, and he would be mocked for moral decline.

In the value system of traditional Confucianism, the moral requirement for scholars is to value righteousness over profit. This amount of one wen is humiliating Zhao Nanxing twice.

The veins on Zhang Juzheng's forehead jumped. He didn't remember teaching this kind of humiliating method during the lectures. This wasn't taught by him; it must have been taught by Feng Bao.

It must be. Eunuchs are always very good at fixing people!

"If he can't bear the humiliation, he can hang himself. I admire him for being a man, and I will give him an official burial!" Zhu Yijun said very confidently, "If you are willing to sacrifice your life, you can pull the Emperor off his horse! If he has the guts, he can hang himself, like the Zhejiang Governor Zhu Wan, and commit suicide to express his ambition. I will admire his lofty ambition, and I will bow my head and admit my mistake to him."

"Does he dare?"

Loftiness is the epitaph of the lofty; baseness is the pass of the base.

Base people always rely on their own baseness to take advantage everywhere, and can even occupy the high ground of public opinion to point fingers at others. Lofty people, however, because of their loftiness, can only write their loftiness on their tombstones.

Zhu Yijun cared very, very much about the matter of Zhu Wan. If one seeks glory and gets humiliation like this, who in the world would still risk their lives for him, this Emperor?

"He doesn't dare. If he had this guts, he wouldn't have ended up like this." Zhang Juzheng said very definitely. If he dared, he wouldn't have ended up like this.

The Great Ming also has critics. Lin Fucheng even angered the Emperor and was exiled to the Nanyang to inspect the plantation economy. Li Zhi, as a critic, criticized content that was substantial, and the Emperor of Ming even copied a few articles and sent them to the gazette to let the officials of the world take them as a warning.

But Zhao Nanxing is not. He doesn't dare to analyze the

problem too clearly or too clearly, because he will offend people he dare not offend, and offend people who give him money.

He doesn't even dare to be too reckless. He knows clearly that it was the Emperor who let Li Chengliang, this black glove, take action, but Zhao Nanxing doesn't dare to go to the Huangji Gate to petition, because he knows that if he goes, he will undoubtedly die.

Zhang Juzheng's judgment was not wrong. Zhao Nanxing didn't even dare to report the case to the Northern Internal Security Division. He knew it would only bring greater humiliation.

Zhao Nanxing chose to swallow his anger and wait until the New Year was over to return to Jiangnan to continue teaching. ===== CHAPTER 815 =====