Chapter 996: Broadly Spreading Eyes and Ears, Deeply Planting Claws and Teeth

The difficulty of a good ending and the ambition for longevity are a pair of twin brothers.

The difficulty of a good ending applies not only to the monarch but also to the ministers. Wang Chonggu's nephew Wang Jian, Zhang Juzheng's number one hawk and hound Wang Zhuan, and the backstabbing from Ling Yunyi's own clan are all similar difficulties of a good ending.

The reason Zhang Juzheng was so eager to hand over the Quanchu Guild Hall to Shen Shixing, and even went to great lengths to clear the Zhang faction, was based on this worry: get these things done while he still had the energy, rather than leaving them to his successor, Shen Shixing.

Shen Shixing couldn't handle them either.

While the Great Ming was laughing at Felipe for being old and starting to act recklessly, this disaster would also fairly fall upon the Great Ming's Emperor and ministers. No one could hide, and no one could escape.

When people get old, their physical strength declines and their energy is insufficient, so the people below start to have all kinds of small thoughts. With mutual suspicion and a spiral upward, the difficulty of a good ending becomes an unsolvable knot.

The Daoist master wanted to use the supernatural power of immortality to deter the ministers in the court and the ambitious. Obviously, he failed. Most people didn't believe the Daoist master could really become an immortal.

The embroidered-uniform guards moved really fast. In the nine days of the metropolitan examination, they investigated the ins and outs of the problem clearly.

"The problem now is that the Second Grand Secretary is ashamed and resigned, and recommended you, Junior Grand Minister, to be the Second Grand Secretary." Shen Shixing said with a frown.

The investigation by the embroidered-uniform guards had not yet been fully disclosed and was currently still within the Embroidered-Uniform Guard Division. The Emperor had not yet transferred it to the relevant authorities.

Ling Yunyi had to resign. If he didn't resign, the Emperor wouldn't be able to publicly deal with this case. No matter what, he had to give Ling Yunyi this face. Ling Yunyi resigning allowed the case to continue to advance, but his resignation broke the stable pattern of the court again.

The Zhang faction was powerful and deeply rooted, and the officials were tongue-tied. The Great Ming's supervision and error-correction power were ineffective against the Zhang faction. If this killing star Ling Yunyi left, Zhang Juzheng's turning the blade inward would even be countered. So the situation in the court needed Ling Yunyi to continue to be in the court.

This became a trade-off problem again.

A treacherous official's careful planning over several years is really not as good as a fool's sudden inspiration. Look at this fool's sudden inspiration, which put Ling Yunyi and Zhang Juzheng on the stage, unable to move.

"Me to be the Second Grand Secretary?" Gao Qiyu pointed at himself and laughed, shaking his head. "If I really have to go on stage to sing, that would be singing a rival show with you, Shen Shixing."

Gao Qiyu didn't feel that he could sing this rival show with Zhang Juzheng. Zhang Juzheng's opponents in this life were Gao Gong, Wang Chonggu, and Ling Yunyi. Gao Qiyu didn't feel that he could play the role of checking and balancing the Zhang faction.

First of all, Gao Qiyu didn't have the power of three thousand guest troops in his hands.

"So, now we are waiting for the Emperor, the Master, and the Second Grand Secretary to come up with a solution." Shen Shixing informed Gao Qiyu of all the inside information.

Gao Qiyu was fortunate to have found Shen Shixing. If he had gone to ask others, they wouldn't have told him the truth, because the Emperor hadn't made it public. Only a few high officials were qualified to know these messages.

Shen Shixing and Gao Qiyu discussed for a while, but they couldn't come up with a solution. They both felt that the final result would probably be covering it up, at least until Zhang Juzheng's large-scale party clearing ended, before the Emperor would allow Ling Yunyi to resign. Only then could the imperial examination cheating case of the twentieth year of Wanli continue to advance.

"A merchant arrived in the capital and pleaded to me, but I didn't see him." After Shen Shixing finished talking to Gao Qiyu about the imperial examination cheating case, he mentioned another matter. Sun Kehong had brought his son to the capital to plead guilty.

Wang Zhuan had fallen, but the Emperor had no intention of implicating others. In more than ten years, the scale of corruption was less than 30,000 silver a year. To implicate others for this, the court didn't have that much leisure.

But the Emperor not pursuing it didn't mean that the merchant general of the Songjiang Ocean Trading Firm, Sun Kehong, could act as if nothing had happened.

A scrap of paper floating down from the court was like Mount Tai pressing down on merchants like Sun Kehong.

Sun Kehong found the Quanchu Guild Hall and found out that the Quanchu Guild Hall had changed hands. Seeing that it was an old acquaintance, Shen Shixing, he immediately submitted a visiting card, but the card was like a stone sinking into the sea, with no news.

Shen Shixing said helplessly, "It's not convenient for me to see him. A few days ago, because of the banquet at the Quanchu Guild Hall, I was reprimanded by the Emperor. If I see him now, I'll be hitting the muzzle of a gun. But if I don't see him, no one in the capital will see him. Now he is like an ant on a hot pot, anxious."

It was a coincidence. Shen Shixing wasn't convenient. He had feasted in a big way during the New Year and was knocked unconscious by Gao Qiyu. He hadn't recovered yet.

Sun Kehong was generally considered a running dog of the Zhang faction because Shen Shixing had close dealings with Sun Kehong when he was the Governor of Songjiang.

This matter of Sun Kehong was really not a big deal, but if someone could pass a word to the Tonghe Palace, even if it was just mentioned in front of the Emperor, the Emperor would know, and the matter would pass. But even with wealth like the Sun family, they still couldn't do it.

"You mean for me to help pass a word? I won't pass it." Gao Qiyu immediately said, "I don't want to have any dealings with profit-seeking people."

"There is a Su-Song merchant group behind Sun Kehong, so I won't see him even more."

Gao Qiyu was already very polite. As a scholar-official, he didn't have a good face for these merchants.

Merchants pursue profit and often use unscrupulous means. Gao Qiyu knew the small triangular trade very well. This discrimination couldn't be blamed on Gao Qiyu. In this day and age, scholar-officials generally had this attitude.

Especially toward these rich merchants who had merchant groups behind them, Gao Qiyu avoided them like snakes and scorpions.

"Anyway, there is such a matter. Whether you see him or not is up to you." Shen Shixing shook his head and said, "The form and energy continue to change. The merchants of Songjiang Prefecture are becoming completely different. In the end, one day, Junior Grand Minister, you will have to face them, not hide from them."

Shen Shixing went to Songjiang to be the Governor, and the merchants were undergoing terrifying changes under the stimulation of the commodity economy.

"Oh? I'd like to hear the details." Gao Qiyu looked solemn and asked Shen Shixing why he said that. The form and energy continuing to change meant their appearance and foundation were undergoing drastic changes, so drastic that the court had to face them.

Shen Shixing thought for a moment and then told the story of what he had seen.

"Ten thousand kinds of frost-covered heavens compete for freedom. Songjiang Prefecture has completed the transformation of the commodity economy. It has both good and bad. It has walked at the very front of the Great Ming, and even the merchants are like this."

"At the very beginning, the entire market was in free competition. At this time, everything was flourishing. The merchants held silver and even participated in the production of the workshops themselves."

In the first stage of free competition, consumers could buy all kinds of high-quality and inexpensive goods, even sighing at the beauty of life. In order to compete for market share, workshop owners had to give up part of their profits to the market and craftsmen to maintain the market's eager demand.

This stage was the most exciting moment. Whether it was the court or the people, they all sincerely welcomed this competition.

But free competition would soon enter the second stage: endless price wars. This kind of price war squeezed the price of goods to the edge of cost. Workshops tried their best but couldn't make money, but instead lost money. For the people, the direct experience was that goods were emerging one after another, dazzling, and the prices were low.

This kind of endless price war was a crazy farce before the market completely collapsed. But by this step, no one could stop it.

"Costs are getting higher and higher because they need to give craftsmen enough profit to mobilize their enthusiasm. Under heavy rewards, there must be brave men. Craftsmen often ignore production rules and start to increase production, while the prices in the market are forcing each other, getting lower and lower, and profits are getting thinner and thinner."

"Junior Grand Minister, what do you think will happen in this situation?" Shen Shixing sipped his tea and asked.

Gao Qiyu frowned and said, "Under the pincer attack of high costs and thin profits, plus prices getting lower and lower, the market is cutting each other with knives. The larger the scale, the higher the ability to resist risks. Small and medium-sized workshops will slowly disappear because they cannot afford this risk."

Shen Shixing nodded, sighed, and said, "That's right. Watching the high buildings rise, watching the guests feast, watching the buildings collapse—I have witnessed a building collapse once."

Shen Shixing was talking about the cotton textile business. In the early days of opening the sea, a large number of cotton textile workshops sprang up like bamboo shoots after rain in Songjiang Prefecture. Everything was so full of vitality, but only ten years later, the price of cotton cloth continued to fall. At its lowest, it was even lower than the cost price.

A large number of small and medium-sized workshops fell in this price frenzy, falling into the torrent of the era. The workshops with the largest scale and the strongest ability to resist risks had the last laugh.

What the court hoped for was that higher production efficiency, more technological improvements, and lower costs would win free competition;

But the reality was that those who were more ruthless in exploitation, those who didn't treat people as people, those with lower prices, and those with stronger capital won the final victory of free competition.

Sun Kehong was the winner. He looked like he had won, but he was just a survivor.

Shen Shixing looked at Gao Qiyu and said seriously, "The annexation in the market is more cruel and ruthless than the annexation of land. If it weren't for the sudden arrival of the Pacific Merchant Alliance, which gave these small and medium-sized workshops a breather and made their land, craftsmen, and tools more valuable, their exit would have been even more miserable."

"The establishment of the Pacific Merchant Alliance has benefited millions of families."

The Pacific Merchant Alliance was not a farce to please the Emperor and satisfy the Emperor's ambition, but had actually obtained a not-so-solid market. Its influence on the Great Ming was very far-reaching, so much so that even Gao Qiyu himself hadn't realized the significance of it.

"I just wanted to be the Minister of Rites." Gao Qiyu was a bit confused. After thinking about it, he still refused to claim credit. His thoughts were relatively pure: he wanted to advance.

Gao Qiyu asked with some confusion, "If the Pacific Merchant Alliance isn't established, small and medium-sized workshops will collapse; if it is established, they still have to exit. Wasn't this Pacific Merchant Alliance established in vain?"

Gao Qiyu, in a flash of inspiration, not only didn't claim credit but also developed a strong worry. He was afraid that in order to advance, he had done something bad.

Shen Shixing shook his head and said, "Because in the next frenzy, these small workshop owners won't be able to resist, because the iron horse is coming. One 'Shengping No. 9' iron horse is equal to three hundred weavers working day and night."

"Iron horses are very expensive. One horsepower costs twenty silver. The business opportunities brought by the Pacific Merchant Alliance only allowed small and medium-sized workshops to sell at a good price in this frenzy of annexation. They no longer had the energy to make larger-scale investments."

"Facing more powerful large workshops and merchant groups, they can only choose to surrender. Surrendering now can still sell at a good price. The result of stubborn resistance is losing everything."

Higher production efficiency made these workshops with strong capital more likely to win, because they could continue to invest, improve efficiency, reduce costs, lower prices, force the weak out, and squeeze everyone out of the cotton textile industry.

"Isn't this land annexation?" Gao Qiyu was slightly bewildered. He even scratched his head in a bit of a loss of composure. The things that happened in land annexation seemed to have happened again in the cotton textile industry, although the experience was more complicated, and the court was still helpless.

"So, the merchant groups forming in the Great Ming, these rich merchants, are gradually replacing the local gentry, and even the powerful and wealthy cannot be spared. The cotton textile industry in Songjiang Prefecture has gradually become a monopoly. Junior Grand Minister, one day you will have to deal with them, not avoid them like this." Shen Shixing stopped here.

The first stage of free competition, the second stage of endless price wars, the third stage of small and medium-sized workshops gradually exiting—a behemoth relying on merchant groups had taken shape.

And Songjiang Prefecture was in the fourth stage. This behemoth had begun to gradually emerge from the water, showing its terrifying influence on the market that was almost omnipotent.

Gao Qiyu hadn't been the Governor of Songjiang Prefecture. Shen Shixing didn't say any more after reaching this point. If he continued, Gao Qiyu wouldn't be able to empathize.

This behemoth, which had survived the cruel price war with great difficulty, controlled almost all markets. Almost all cotton market outlets were controlled by this behemoth. This was market concentration.

This behemoth showed several characteristics:

One: It is not controlled by human will. Even Sun Kehong is a slave to this will, not the master. The court is also somewhat afraid of it. Eliminating this behemoth is equivalent to eliminating the industry and the livelihood of the craftsmen.

Two: It does not allow provocation. It does not allow the existence of identical creatures in this market. It will show its cruelty to any newcomers or small and medium-sized workshops. It does not allow newcomers to appear, nor does it allow small and medium-sized workshops to survive.

Three: It will expand without limit, annexing and swallowing small and medium-sized workshops, expanding production scale without limit, and circling more people into its slaves, thereby resisting possible crises—the strangulation from the court.

Four: Its foundation is profit-seeking. After it occupies the market, it will not provide high-quality and inexpensive goods, but will price everything, specifically manifested as: extremely high supply prices, but relatively poor quality.

When Shen Shixing was in Songjiang Prefecture, he hadn't seen all the characteristics of this behemoth. He only saw these four characteristics, because in the current Great Ming, this behemoth was still under the water.

The large workshops with strong capital still hadn't achieved final victory. There were still a large number of small workshops and even small workshops of individual farmers, and because of the establishment of the Pacific Merchant Alliance, the original completed market concentration was also dispersed.

Originally, at this time, this behemoth should have used its overwhelming scale and cost advantages to launch a comprehensive annexation of these small and medium-sized workshops. Suddenly, the Pacific Merchant Alliance came, letting this behemoth dive back under the water to wait for an opportunity.

Only market concentration had been completed, and the behemoth that controlled most of the cotton market outlets hadn't completed production concentration (annexation) and capital concentration (merchant groups) and hadn't shown its full face.

But even if he only saw a little, Shen Shixing was still very wary of this behemoth.

Shen Shixing had a sense of déjà vu about this behemoth. He always felt that this guy wasn't something new; there was a sense of familiarity that made people feel like a lifetime had passed. After Shen Shixing returned to the capital, he knew this familiarity wasn't fake. It had appeared long ago, and it was even bigger.

As early as the Northern and Southern Song Dynasties, it had already appeared: the government-run wine shops.

People of the Great Ming are all like this. When they are confused, they always seek answers from history. And Shen Shixing really found it.

The influence of the Song Dynasty's government-run wine industry was extremely far-reaching. Anyone who brewed wine had to buy wine yeast through the government-run "Zhengdian" (main shops) to brew wine. And the small shops that bought wine from the wine shops were called "Jiaodian" (foot shops). Jiaodian sold wine but not stir-fried dishes, mostly marinated dishes and cold meals, while Zhengdian provided hot dishes, stir-fried dishes, etc.

"Along the River During the Qingming Festival" has the distinction between Zhengdian and Jiaodian.

This behemoth of the Song Dynasty's government-run wine industry, developed to the end, was no longer affected by the court's decrees. All vested interests did their best to prevent any changes to the system. Moreover, the Northern and Southern Song courts were helpless against this behemoth.

Because this behemoth, developed to the end, was not as simple as a wine shop. Grain merchants, Zhengdian and Jiaodian that brewed wine, prostitutes who sold wine, gambling dens that operated around the wine shops, etc. —the whole body was affected by a single hair. In the end, this behemoth disappeared into the long river of history along with the end of the Great Song and the sinking of the Divine Land.

And now, with the rapid development of the commodity economy in Songjiang Prefecture, this behemoth was slowly emerging from the water again.

Not only cotton textiles, but also timber, tung oil, shipbuilding, grain and oil, etc., were all developing in this direction.

Gao Qiyu returned home, rested for a while, found Sun Kehong from the visiting cards, and invited Sun Kehong to meet. Sun Kehong originally intended to feast at Taibai Tower, but Gao Qiyu called Sun Kehong to his mansion to meet, not Taibai Tower.

"A banquet is naturally unnecessary. Since Assistant Minister Shen introduced you, I won't see anyone else." Gao Qiyu signaled him to sit down and talk after Sun Kehong paid his respects. Gao Qiyu wasn't too arrogant but chatted with Sun Kehong a lot about cotton textiles.

That guy Shen Shixing, besides being soft and benevolent, had no lack of ability. Gao Qiyu naturally had to be wary of things that made Shen Shixing so wary.

"The Wang Zhuan affair is the Master clearing the party, and it has nothing to do with you, Sun Sun Shangzong. You don't need to worry too much. I will mention this when I go to the Imperial Study of the Tonghe Palace to see the Emperor tomorrow." Gao Qiyu gave a clear reply.

Sun Kehong was already gray-haired and sighed, "To tell the Junior Grand Minister, I came to the capital with the idea of 'success or death.' If I don't get protection, I really might not be able to control the Songjiang Ocean Trading Firm."

"I have always been ruthless, plus the imperial favor of the Holy One. These heroes of the merchant groups dare not do anything to me, but once I lose the imperial favor, I'm afraid that once I leave the capital, I will be cut into a thousand pieces."

Sun Kehong was really a bit scared this time. Once the Emperor withdrew his imperial favor, he and his family would be completely finished. They wouldn't even need the Emperor to do it himself; these people in the merchant groups were even more ruthless and wouldn't spit out the bones.

"The Emperor didn't even take away your ninth-rank merchant general official title, so don't worry yourself." Gao Qiyu said with a smile. He had a new feeling about the behemoth Shen Shixing mentioned. This thing really needed the Emperor to suppress it.

In the current Great Ming world, there really wasn't any government office that could suppress this thing.

Staying in Songjiang Prefecture was imperative.

After Sun Kehong left, Gao Qiyu went to the Tonghe Palace to see the Emperor. He waited in the West Flower Hall because His Majesty was seeing the Anti-Corruption Censor Xu Chengchu. The Emperor's angry voice reached the West Flower Hall from the Imperial Study, scaring Gao Qiyu.

"1.33 million silver! A small magistrate of Ci Prefecture in Zhangde Prefecture, in just seven years, embezzled a full 1.33 million! That's four Wang Zhuans!" Zhu Yijun stood before the imperial desk, walking back and forth. Wang Zhuan had embezzled more than 300,000 silver in more than ten years, but this magistrate of Ci County, Chen Lizhen, had made 1.33 million in seven years—more than enough for two former imperial mausoleums!

Xu Chengchu said in a low voice, "Ci Prefecture has coal fields. He collected silver from these landlords and collected so much money."

The source of corruption was very simple: coal. Among the seven things to open the door—firewood, rice, oil, salt, sauce, vinegar, and tea—firewood was the head.

Ever since the Great Ming's mining technology continued to develop, everyone was digging for coal everywhere to replace the firewood of the past. For the sake of firewood, the people had cut down entire mountains until they were bare. Now coal was durable and the fire was stable, and the price wasn't expensive.

The silver that the magistrate of Ci County, Chen Lizhen, embezzled all came from the coal fields. He didn't take bribes; he let his younger brother operate the coal fields himself.

Digging for coal couldn't avoid accidents, and Chen Lizhen suppressed them all. In these seven short years, more than a thousand people died in the mines. Finally, the paper couldn't wrap the fire, and it was discovered by the patrolling censor.

But this Chen Lizhen was under the Zhang faction. Although he wasn't a direct disciple, the patrolling censor didn't dare to impeach him and had been suppressing it. This time, Zhang Juzheng was clearing the party on a large scale. Once the patrolling censor saw that Zhang Juzheng had even cleared Wang Zhuan, he knew Zhang Juzheng was serious, so he impeached Chen Lizhen.

"He even started a coal gang! Is he worthy of being a court official?!" Zhu Yijun looked at the memorial in his hand, his anger rising.

Besides the coal fields, the biggest revenue for this 1.33 million silver was the coal gang in the city. In this day and age, the mountain bandits outside the city and the local bullies inside the city all had the blood of the people on their hands.

As a magistrate, Chen Lizhen was the parent official and the "blue sky" old master of Ci Prefecture. He personally supported the coal gang, making the people under his rule restless.

"Escort him to the capital for strict interrogation. Issue an order to Henan to strictly supervise this case. All his accomplices must be captured in one net to return peace to the people!" Zhu Yijun issued a strict decree. This was 1.33 million silver, absolutely not a small number.

Xu Chengchu hesitated and said, "I found that Zhangde Prefecture in Henan is also not very clean. This 1.33 million silver is likely suspected of balancing the accounts."

As an old official with sufficient anti-corruption experience, even with coal fields and coal gangs, a magistrate, in seven years, would at most make 500,000 silver. This huge number of 1.33 million silver looked too much like balancing the accounts.

He had handled many cases, and he had developed a feeling. How much a magistrate embezzled and how many pots he carried—he could guess seven or eight out of ten just by looking at the number.

It was all done by Chen Lizhen, it was all his fault! How could he have such great ability to handle so many things?

Chen Lizhen was clearly carrying the pot for the entire Zhangde Prefecture. Xu Chengchu felt it was impossible.

Obviously, such a huge number for a magistrate was eight out of ten carrying the pot for the entire Zhangde Prefecture.

But continuing to investigate might lead to Zhang Juzheng, so Xu Chengchu had to ask for the Emperor's decision: whether to continue the investigation or not expand the influence and stop here.

Don't make the whole world your enemy when fighting corruption. Fight corruption continuously. The duty of the Anti-Corruption Division is to strictly curb the scale of corruption and ensure the efficient operation of the administration.

Corruption is rampant, and administrative efficiency is zero, but if it is not allowed at all, many things cannot be done.

"Minister Xu, supervise this case well. If it crosses the line, handle it together." Zhu Yijun naturally understood why Xu Chengchu came. He drew a line. If it crossed the line, investigate it together; if it didn't cross the line, there was no need to pursue it too much.

50,000 silver was the line that triggered the Anti-Corruption Division to fight corruption. Any more than that, and you would have to go to the Anti-Corruption Division to have a cup of tea.

After Xu Chengchu withdrew, Gao Qiyu had an audience with the Emperor.

Zhu Yijun asked Feng Bao to tell the story of Ling Yunyi's book card from beginning to end. Although Gao Qiyu had already learned part of the details from Shen Shixing, Feng Bao told more content.

Including how the Ling mansion's gatekeeper was bribed, and how the Taizhou Ling clan removed Ling Yunyi from the genealogy and then turned back to lick him.

For the sake of a scholar, the Taizhou Ling clan spent a full 70,000 silver, while the Ling gatekeeper only took 200 taels of silver. The one who really took this money was Ling Yunyi's youngest son. This was the difficult part of this matter.

Ling Yunyi couldn't explain it clearly and could only resign and retire.

Ling Yunyi's son sold all his father's glory for 70,000 silver.

This made Gao Qiyu feel some emotion. Back then, Yan Song could be called invincible, but Yan Shifan's solicitation of bribes from the Prince of Yu's mansion destroyed everything.

"Suppress this case for a year. The Second Grand Secretary will resign next year, and the Second Grand Secretary has already recommended you to be the Second Grand Secretary. You should also prepare." Zhu Yijun didn't hide Ling Yunyi's recommendation. Too many people were staring at this position of Second Grand Secretary.

"I obey the decree." Gao Qiyu didn't have much feeling about this position of Second Grand Secretary. He was very satisfied to be the Minister of Rites, but no one would think their official position was too big.

"Your Majesty, because of the Wang Zhuan case, Sun Kehong came to the capital and even probed to me. I felt it was necessary to see him, so I asked about his difficulties." After Gao Qiyu reported on the metropolitan examination, he mentioned Sun Kehong's arrival in the capital.

"Tell me in detail." Zhu Yijun inquired. Gao Qiyu didn't like merchants. Since he met him, he must have had some plan.

Gao Qiyu bowed and said, "Observing the transformation of powerful merchants and rich families, at first, a hundred boats compete for the current, flourishing; then they compete and squeeze each other, and the profit is as thin as paper; finally, the many wither, and the giants take it

"Such a behemoth, holding the lifeblood of the markets and manipulating the livelihoods of all trades, is difficult to curb in its momentum and impossible to satisfy in its desires. If the imperial court does not plan early and allows it to entrench itself, I fear it will leverage its industry to demand status, becoming too large to control."

"I believe we urgently need to prepare. We should either establish clear laws to restrain its actions or open new commercial routes to divide its influence. Furthermore, we must spread our eyes and ears widely and plant our agents deep within the commercial ports of every province. We must absolutely not allow such a behemoth to remain outside the vision of the imperial court, letting its wild ambitions grow until it becomes a fatal threat."

The reason Gao Qiyu was willing to meet Sun Kehong was precisely to spread eyes and ears and plant agents deep, so as not to let this thing destroy the Great Ming's commodity economy.

Man is not the master of this thing, but its slave; that is the key issue.