Chapter 79: Roasting Millet and Pork, Treating Illness and Saving People

Duke of Wei's mansion.

Xu Bangrui held a letter tightly, his face full of amazement.

"Good! He also knows that the officialdom is corrupt; it's hard for them, the Zhu family, to shirk the responsibility!"

To have encountered such an Emperor who can carry things, no wonder he told him not to seek death; it's not unjust, really not unjust!

Xu Weizhi stood behind his old father, anxiously: "Father, this was sent urgently from North Zhili; Hai Rui is still some distance from Yingtian Prefecture, please make a decision early!"

Hai Rui was about to investigate to the head, and his old father was still in the mood to praise the Emperor; it was really anxious.

Xu Bangrui ignored his son and still stared at the Emperor'

He muttered to himself: "My heart is clear, my resolve is unwavering... Good, good, good!"

"My son, honestly, this heroic spirit—even I cannot help but be moved."

He found it hard to believe that this was of the same lineage as Emperor Shizong.

He understood a bit more now, regarding the feelings of his ancestor Xu Da when he followed the Founding Emperor, as recorded in the notes left in the ancestral temple.

It was a pity that the Heir could not grasp this feeling.

Xu Weizhi was still pacing anxiously behind him, urging: "Father, think about these things later. Hai Rui is coming; we don't have much time left!"

If it could be heard in Beizhili, let alone Huai'an Prefecture.

Basically, as soon as the Imperial Envoy passed Shandong, they already knew in advance.

Finally, Xu Bangrui became impatient with his son's urging and couldn't help but scold: "I'm not in a hurry, what are you in a hurry for!"

"You were tricked by Hai Rui and lost face, yet you haven't learned your lesson, thinking all day about getting back at him. I don't even dare to think about it, and you think you're worthy!?"

Xu Weizhi was scolded and wanted to argue but stopped himself.

He turned his head away in embarrassment and muttered: "This child was considering the safety of the Duke's mansion."

Xu Bangrui frowned at his son.

He wanted to strike him several times, but upon reflection, considering his son's age, he held back.

He said coldly: "A decision? What decision do you want me to make?"

"Should I let you be like that fool, the Marquis of Huaining, and privately mobilize troops to intercept the Imperial Envoy?"

"Or learn from those civil officials and stage a show of coercing public opinion?"

"Use your brain!"

"Even if you're looking for death, you don't have to be as eager to throw yourself into it as you are."

"Was the lesson you learned last time not enough for you to remember!?"

Xu Weizhi was somewhat unconvinced and argued: "But we can't just sit and wait for death, can we?"

Xu Bangrui took a deep breath, suppressed his anger, and said in a low voice: "Sit and wait for death? What crime have I committed?"

"How long have I been back in Nanzhili? Death won't reach me!"

He hadn't been back in Nanzhili long, and he had been reaping benefits for nearly half a year, only for them to push him out to take the fall.

Let alone committing a crime, he couldn't even command the various branches of the Duke of Wei's mansion like an extension of his own arm yet.

Xu Weizhi was stunned and couldn't help but say: "Father, the previous private mobilization of the Huben Right Guard was the third and fourth branches of the mansion..."

Xu Bangrui stood up, interrupted his son, and said coldly: "That's right, you also know it was the third and fourth branches."

He said with an unclear meaning: "If these people had the Emperor and the clan in their hearts, then they would be the ones who should sit and wait for death and die of old age."

These words were blunt to the extreme.

Xu Weizhi finally understood his father's meaning and finally understood why his father sat so steadily and wasn't in a hurry at all.

It turned out he was already prepared to make some sacrifices!

He couldn't help but feel a chill in his body.

It was as if he realized for the first time that his father was his father, and the Duke of Wei was the Duke of Wei.

To let his family members die so casually almost made him shudder!

These weren't distant relatives outside the five degrees of mourning, but flesh and blood!

Not to mention anything else, when certain people weren't in Nanzhili, it was these uncles and cousins that Xu Weizhi relied on; the gratitude and affection were no less than for his father!

Was this the cold-bloodedness of the Duke of Wei, the bloody reality of the struggle!?

Xu Bangrui kept his hands in his sleeves, glanced at his son who was struggling to accept it, and said softly: "The Emperor said, Xu Bangrui, don't look for death."

He turned his head, patted his son's shoulder, and turned to leave.

Leaving only one sentence: "You don't want your old man to look for death either, right?"

Ministry of Revenue yamen.

Cao Bangfu, Minister of Revenue for Nanzhili, threw the letter in his hand into the brazier with an ugly expression.

Qin Minglei, Minister of Rites, sat in the lower seat, sitting quietly.

Two pairs of eyes watched the brazier, the flames dancing and reflecting in their pupils.

It was as if they were trying to fix the words on it into their hearts, staring without blinking.

The sky was dim, which just happened to make the expressions on their faces flicker uncertainly.

The two of them had never imagined that after experiencing the Jiajing and Longqing reigns, just as they were about to retire and step ashore, they would encounter such a sage monarch.

Such a figure was rare even after scouring the history books; who would have thought they would encounter one in their lifetime!

A good sage monarch indeed; if this isn't a good sage monarch, who could be?

This was the welfare of the people, the dawn of the Great Ming, and... for them, a catastrophe.

Qin Minglei shook his head and sighed, praising: "On the way here, I pondered for a long time, but I couldn't figure out how the Emperor reached a consensus with the court officials."

This wasn't a storybook where everyone followed the Emperor's order with a single command.

Let alone things that harmed their reputation, even if they lost a single copper coin, the Emperor would be cast aside.

Cao Bangfu was not in high spirits and shook his head: "Nothing more than coercion and bribery."

"The Open-Trade Law and opening the seas—two bones, enough for them to gnaw on."

"It's just getting people to team up to gnaw on the meat of Nanzhili."

Those high-ranking nobles and officials would never willingly dig out their own flesh and blood to carry the Emperor's sedan chair.

There must be compensation.

According to what he knew, Zhang Siwei's father was a salt merchant, and he announced his support for the Open-Trade Law among the salt merchants.

Ma Ziqiang just happened to have his father die, and he took the opportunity to be retained by the Emperor.

And those nobles, one after another, sent people south to investigate maritime transport.

All sorts of things.

In short, they returned the stolen goods, but they also gained benefits.

Only these people in Nanzhili did not get the qualifications to bargain with the Emperor.

How could this not make one angry?

Qin Minglei still couldn't help but marvel: "Even so, this wrist-work is unbelievable to me."

Discussing and compromising one by one... where is this an Emperor? This is clearly the talent of a Grand Secretary!

Don't think that overcoming dissenting views or persuading people one by one is a simple matter.

Without the talent of a Grand Secretary, it is impossible to have such wrist-work.

This means that the one on the throne now is a monster with the talent of a Grand Secretary and the righteousness of an Emperor.

Cao Bangfu frowned: "Let's not talk about this; the problem is, what should we do now?"

The Emperor has this determination, looking like he is not afraid of the situation escalating.

Then Nanzhili must either bow its head or show determination no less than this.

Bowing one's head means cutting flesh; showing determination means gambling with one's life. This is not easy to choose—Xu Jie just lost his gamble.

Qin Minglei reminded him meaningfully: "The Duke of Wei's mansion and the Marquis of Huaining's mansion have really closed their doors to guests now; even the Ministry of War couldn't knock open their gates."

This was to remind Cao Bangfu that these two military leaders had chickened out, so he should stop thinking about showing off his muscles.

Cao Bangfu also sighed: "If it weren't for that old immortal Xu Jie, how could we have fallen into this situation."

Originally, it was a matter of Xu Jie dying at most; if Yingtian Prefecture bled a little, they could have coaxed Hai Rui back.

But Xu Jie, in order to survive, panicked and forced everyone to huddle together, making everyone sink deeper and deeper.

Qin Minglei shook his head: "Minister Cao, not us; I haven't been in Nanzhili long, and even if I took some, it wasn't a big crime."

Compared to some people in the Ministry of War mobilizing crossbows and some in the Ministry of Revenue controlling grain transport, he, Qin, could really get away at any time.

Cao Bangfu paused.

He said unhappily: "Stop using these words to manipulate me; tell me, what exactly do you mean."

Qin Minglei nodded, leaned forward, and said seriously: "If you want to get away, you must first understand what the Emperor wants!"

"Did Hai Rui come to take our lives?"

Cao Bangfu reacted immediately: "The Emperor wants money!"

Qin Minglei nodded: "Nanzhili is intricate and complicated; it's not something that can be suppressed just because Hai Rui came."

He paused and added: "Even if Xu Jie were replaced, it would be the same!"

Cao Bangfu followed Qin Minglei's line of thought.

He pondered: "Since he doesn't intend to touch the official system or regional divisions of Nanzhili, he won't force us into prison."

"Compared to political turmoil, the Emperor should hope more that Hai Rui can peel the cocoon and bring back the results of the salt administration!"

Qin Minglei glanced at the Minister of Revenue, who was still using cautious words, and was convinced in his heart.

He took over the conversation and added: "Hai Rui just raiding the salt merchants' homes should be enough to finish the job with the silver."

"The focus now is that he is investigating how much salt Nanzhili actually produced to set this year's tax quota."

"Give it to him!"

"Sell the future salt tax quota to the Emperor, and we will take the harvest of previous years and request retirement!"

This is a gecko cutting off its tail to stop the loss in time.

Cao Bangfu is not a moth to a flame; once reminded, he immediately became enlightened.

He stood up immediately: "Not just salt administration, I can also hand over the grain tax for the two seasons to Hai Rui!"

"Let's go, find Hai Rui!"

Qin Minglei hurriedly grabbed him and reminded: "Our weight is not enough; the Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, Xu Shi, went to find Hai Rui and was directly arrested and sent to the capital. We should be more cautious."

Cao Bangfu stopped and nodded slowly: "You mean..."

Qin Minglei nodded: "Let Li Chunfang come forward for everyone; his rank is high enough, and if everyone is tied together, it will be easier to talk."

After the two agreed, they went out together.

At the Huaihe River port, someone got the news, and it spread from ten to a hundred, and everyone knew Hai Rui was coming to investigate the case.

They crowded the port, looking into the distance.

Besides ordinary people, there were also retainers from various mansions whose identities were unknown, standing at the port and in the rooms of restaurants, watching Hai Rui's movements.

Before long.

A large ship hanging the Imperial Envoy flag slowly appeared in everyone's field of vision.

Some of the people were watching the fun, and some waved their arms to welcome him.

The retainers and yamen runners looked at each other, then disappeared into the crowd, each returning to their mansions to report the news.

The large ship arrived.

The left and right sides displayed the Provincial Governor's "Avoid" and "Silence" signs to disperse the crowd.

The Embroidered Uniform Guard occupied key positions to prevent hidden arrows.

The first to disembark was Wei Chao, who led the little eunuchs away, heading straight for the yamen to have the Yingtian Prefect copy and post the Emperor's self-reproach edict.

Xu Jie watched the eunuch's retreating back and muttered: "To actually announce it to the world, no wonder it's written in plain language; truly a great spirit."

Hai Rui had no extra expression: "This edict is worth everyone in the world seeing, so they can know... what the overall situation will be in the future."

"The Emperor said this is called maximizing the united front."

The obscure vocabulary did not affect understanding.

Xu Jie was speechless.

Everyone disembarked one after another.

Xu Jie was surrounded in the middle, like a marionette, being driven forward.

Since seeing the Emperor's self-reproach edict, he understood that everyone involved in the case would not be able to escape.

That determination showing through the paper, unless it was rebellion, could truly not be shaken.

He suddenly understood why the Emperor went to the Wang Xiyuan.

At that time, some speculated that the Cabinet was powerful and colluded with the Empress Dowager to hold the Emperor hostage.

Others speculated that the Emperor was at odds with the court officials and deliberately hid in the Wang Xiyuan.

But in the eyes of Xu Jie today, it was very clear—this was taking precautions, having long been prepared for such a time!

If not for such caution, the Emperor would probably not have avoided an early death.

So, how long had this been planned in advance!?

He could hardly see any flaws in this Emperor.

Vicious and ruthless, yet open and aboveboard.

Moving forward without hesitation, yet cautious.

Simply a desperate opponent.

Xu Jie asked casually: "What do you want this old bone of mine to do?"

He was thinking about whether there was any way out for himself and the Xu family.

Xu Jie was not a person who would stretch his neck to be slaughtered, but as long as there was a glimmer of hope, he would struggle to survive.

Rebellion? No need to think about that; it had already reached the Marquis of Huaining and the Duke of Wei, so it was impossible to make such a big mistake and give these figures a chance to connect and rebel.

Cicada shedding its shell? Xu Jie looked up at Hai Rui; if it were an ordinary person, he might be able to play a game of faking death, but unfortunately, this was a smelly, hard stone.

Then, true surrender? But the Emperor seemed to hate him to the bone; even if he took a step back, he no longer had the chips to surrender.

Thinking of this, a sense of powerlessness rose in Xu Jie's heart.

If he were still in the center and knew the Emperor's character earlier, he wouldn't have fallen to this point!

Hai Rui fell half a step behind and pondered for a moment: "First go find the Nanjing Garrison Commander Zhang Jing!"

Nanjing Garrison Commander's Mansion.

"What, dead!?"

Hai Rui and Xu Jie looked at each other, seeing surprise in each other's eyes.

Zhang Jing nodded: "The Marquis of Huaining's mansion held the funeral this morning."

Xu Jie hurriedly asked: "Did you see the body?"

Don't let it be some trick like fire burning the face beyond recognition.

Zhang Jing, a eunuch by background, habitually brought flattery: "Junior Tutor Xu, I went to see it myself; it is indeed Sun Shizong himself."

"The Sun family says it was an illness, but... in my opinion, it must be suicide out of fear of crime!"

"Not only the Marquis of Huaining's mansion, but this morning, the Duke of Wei's mansion also heard the bad news of family members dying of illness one after another."

Speaking of this, he couldn't help but feel a bit dazed.

It was enough that the Marquis of Huaining, who had clashed with him before, died suddenly overnight, but he didn't expect the Duke of Wei's mansion to kneel so quickly.

Was this scared to death by the Imperial Envoy?

What exactly happened, Zhang Jing was still in the dark.

Hai Rui sneered: "They are all people related to the movements of the Huai'an Guard, the Feixiong Guard, and the Huben Right Guard, right."

This means they are being decent to prevent too much involvement; anyone with eyes can see it.

The Marquis of Huaining was enfeoffed during the Tianshun period and gained the title through the Duo Men Incident, always belonging to the bottom of the contempt chain.

The current Marquis of Huaining, Sun Shizong, is already the eighth generation, inheriting the title during the Jiajing period.

As the Nanjing Garrison Commander and concurrently in charge of the Central Military Governor's Office, and having operated in Nanjing for a long time, he can almost be said to be the top chair of the military in Nanzhili.

And the Duke of Wei is the sitting tiger of Nanzhili.

After all, he is a founding noble and has operated in Nanjing for generations; in terms of deep roots, there is no one better.

Each guard and station is basically influenced by the Duke of Wei's mansion.

It's just that I didn't expect these two families to kneel so quickly.

These people can be said to have been scared to death.

But this is not over yet, after all, this matter probably has something to do with the Ministry of War.

Just the fact that the Nanjing Garrison Commander's Office's advisor is concurrently held by the Nanjing Minister of War is enough to implicate them.

Just when everyone was thinking about their own things.

A eunuch suddenly ran in and whispered something in Zhang Jing's ear.

Xu Jie relied on his age and directly slapped the table: "What words can't I, the Nanzhili Provincial Governor, hear!"

Zhang Jing was startled and blurted out: "Former Grand Secretary Li Chunfang wants to see the two Imperial Envoys!"

Hai Rui and Xu Jie looked at each other.

Then, without a word, they stood up at the same time.

Although Li Chunfang is from Yangzhou Prefecture, he also purchased a mansion in Yingtian Prefecture for convenience in traveling and living.

This mansion is not big, but it has a scholarly temperament.

The mansion is scattered with pavilions and towers, all in blue-gray colors, appearing cold and aloof.

Even with flying eaves and carved beams, it is not gorgeous, but exquisite and elegant.

In the pond with rippling blue waves in the center of the courtyard, unknown plants are planted, red and green corresponding.

Li Chunfang casually sprinkled some bait, attracting the koi to swim back and forth, stirring up circles of ripples.

"Master, Xu Shaohu and Hai Gangfeng are here." The servant reported.

Li Chunfang clapped his hands and stood up slowly.

As the two were talking, Hai Rui suddenly stepped in.

"Provincial Governor." Chen Yinzhao hurriedly saluted.

Hai Rui nodded and said gently: "Today is New Year; you go find your father; I will accompany Junior Tutor Xu here."

Chen Yinzhao was overjoyed: "Thank you, Provincial Governor!"

He carefully retreated from the room, and when he reached the corner, he turned to running.

Hai Rui signaled Luo Sigong to get some food; Luo Sigong hesitated for a moment, only retreated outside the door, and called a guard to do this.

At this time, there was no one in the room, so Hai Rui nodded to Xu Jie: "Junior Tutor Xu."

Xu Jie asked curiously: "Gao Gong left so quickly today?"

Hai Rui smiled: "It's New Year, after all; his wife is still waiting for him at home."

Xu Jie grunted, his tone filled with emotion: "The fields in my mansion have almost been divided up by him, right?"

He told the Emperor he supported measuring fields; that was his stance.

If the Emperor hadn't replied yet, and Gao Gong had already handled the matter, that was Gao Gong's ability.

Hai Rui shook his head: "They are still measuring and registering, but it's almost there; once it's clarified, they will start returning the fields."

Xu Jie smiled helplessly.