Chapter 10 Chapter Ten: The Thief of Virtue

Emperor Wanli spent a lot of effort, and Zhang Cheng, who was ordered to pass on the message, barely broke his mouth, and only then did he coax Concubine Zheng De to change her mind. "The queen hasn't given birth yet. As long as your belly is up to you and give birth to a prince for Long Live God, Long Live God can find a way to make him the crown prince. At that time, Long Live God can justifiably issue an edict to change the queen..." "The empress is in the Mood for Love, pampering the harem, giving birth to a prince is a piece of cake..." "Long Live Lord cares most about you, Empress. Why doesn't he want to make you a queen in his heart? It's just a hindrance to the system of this dynasty. You must wait until you give birth to a prince before you can do this matter - just for the sake of empress. You have been pouting for the past few days, and you refuse to go to the Qianqing Palace under the imperial edict, and you don't like to talk to you when the Lord Long Live comes to you; Can't sleep well..."

"Your maidservant is not speaking for the Lord Long Live, but really planning for your empress—if you have been stiff and refused to serve the Lord Long Live, how can you give birth to a prince in your stomach?" The last sentence made Concubine Zheng De amused with a "puchi" laugh, and things finally took a turn for the better, and Zhang Cheng took the opportunity to say a lot of funny things, and Concubine Zheng De then began to smile again, applying vermilion powder, Painter Daiqing dressed up carefully, then lightly moved her lotus steps, boarded the soft sedan chair, and escorted by Zhang Cheng, went to Qianqing Palace to accompany her.

As soon as Emperor Wanli heard the announcement that she had changed her mind, she was immediately overjoyed. He ordered people to prepare the food and drinks first, and at the same time picked out a batch of jewellery. In front of her eyes—and Concubine Zheng De also had a very clear determination on how to grasp the love of Emperor Wanli and achieve her goal of ascending the throne of empress by "giving birth to a prince" because Zhang Cheng's words had an effect on her heart; Therefore, after going through all these twists and turns, when she reappeared in front of Emperor Wanli, not only was she more beautiful and charming in appearance, she was more gentle and considerate in attitude, and she was even more charming in bed...

Therefore, for the next three consecutive days, Emperor Wanli not only stopped the morning court, but also did nothing except stay with Concubine Zheng De; on the fourth day, he barely set aside a moment to do it One thing is to reward Zhang Cheng. In addition to the material gold and silver items, there is also an increase in authority-in this way, Zhang Cheng's power will naturally increase a lot, and even the matter of building the mausoleum Also started to involve him. And when these "stories" that happened in the palace reached the ears of Chief Assistant Shen Shixing, Shen Shixing didn't react at all on the surface, but he couldn't help worrying about it in private.

He has several worries. First, the construction of the mausoleum involved many problems. He knew better than anyone else that the purpose of Zhang Siwei's proposal to build the mausoleum was to divert the attention of Emperor Wanli, so that Emperor Wanli would not concentrate all his energy. In order to liquidate Zhang Juzheng; however, this goal was not achieved at all. Zhang Juzheng was not only chased from his official position, ransacked his home, and his eldest son was forced to commit suicide, but all his family members were exiled to the frontier. Building an old house and living in Beijing for the elderly—the tragedy of Zhang Juzheng’s death was unexpected; it was also unexpected that such a proposal aroused Emperor Wanli’s thought of seriously implementing it; he had to do his best on the surface I agree, but I can't help but have other ideas in my heart.

"Long Live Lord is becoming more and more fond of luxury, and with the help of Concubine Zheng De and Zhang Cheng, who came up with the idea to build a mausoleum, I'm afraid it won't cost millions of taels of silver. Where can the Ministry of Households go to raise money?" I thought about it silently in my heart, and the answer is of course yes - the emperor wants to spend money, and the people need to pay more taxes. This is an eternal law that can be known without even thinking about it. The financial and taxation reforms that have been implemented for most of my life will be completely overturned immediately, and the good law and good intentions of the "one whip tax system" will disappear. Once the tax law is changed and taxes are increased, the first to bear the brunt of the disaster is of course the world. people!

What's more, once the big project of building the mausoleum is started, a large number of craftsmen and money will be used. More than half of the projects of building bridges and paving roads, repairing cities and opening rivers across the country will be temporarily suspended, which will greatly affect the people! Thinking of this, Shen Shixing unconsciously closed his eyes slowly, let out a long breath, shook his head and muttered to himself: "How innocent are the people, how innocent are the people!" His thin pointed face is full of wrinkles, and there are a few gray beards on his lips and chin. His voice is almost non-existent from behind the beard. Fortunately, he didn't want to say this to others—at this moment he Apart from himself, there is only one person in a painting on the wall in his study!

However, before he could fully express his emotions, someone interrupted his monologue; his family came to report: "Master Xu Guoxu is here to visit!" "Quickly please..." Xu Guo's position is Minister of the Ministry of Rites and Dongge University Bachelor, and he is the second assistant. But unconsciously muttered: "It's still raining, he's in a good mood!" As he spoke, he raised his steps to welcome him; since the two were officials in the same dynasty, and they had a very close personal relationship, they were like close relatives and friends, so there was no need to be polite like a guest of honor, and they directly welcomed them into the study and sat down.

Shen Shixing's study room is decorated with ingenuity. In the middle of the wall is a famous painting "Dongtian Mountain Hall" by Dong Yuan of the Southern Tang Dynasty. The couplets on both sides are the original works of Ni Yunlin in the late Yuan Dynasty. Looking at the mangroves, you don’t know the distance, and you can’t see the people when you walk the Qingxi” - this group of calligraphy and paintings was of course carefully arranged by Shen Shixing himself, and his mentality is hidden between the words and paintings; The prime minister is equal in terms of status; but the content of the poems and paintings is advertised as ancient, secluded, and aloof from the world, as if speaking on his behalf: "I am now a high-ranking prime minister, but my heart is It is lofty, so high that you can hang your crown and go away at any time, secluded in the mountains and forests!"

Although this is self-deception, but because he is the chief assistant, no one has ever exposed the truth; Xu Guo has the habit of "entering Zhilan's room and not hearing it for a long time", and he has been in the officialdom for decades He already knew all the knowledge between the mask and the real face. Therefore, after walking into the study, taking a seat on the guest seat, and even taking the tureen to drink tea, after this series of actions, he didn't even look at the picture on the wall. Calligraphy and painting. After taking a sip of tea, Shen Shixing took the lead to speak. He called Xu Guo's name and said, "Weizhen, you are so excited. You will come out to visit on such a rainy day; I can't do it, although I am bored at home. You have to panic, but this old bone can't get up and go out to find friends!"

Xu Guo squinted his eyes and laughed: "The old grandfather is well-cultivated and can sit at home; the lower official is because he has not been in court for a few days, and squatting at home, he always feels that his bones are about to rust, even if it is raining. Come out and move around!" Shen Shixing stroked his beard and said, "Fortunately, your two families live close to each other. When you don't go to court in the future, you can come to my place to play chess and relieve your boredom, lest our two old bones get rusted! " Xu Guoxian nodded his head twice and said: "In this way, I won't be afraid that I won't be able to go to court!" As he spoke, he shook his head twice, and said in a low voice as if self-serving: "But I don't know, how long will I have to wait before I can go to court?" However, upon hearing this, Shen Shixing opened his eyes wide and stared at Xu Guo in horror. After a while, he let out a breath and said to Xu Guo earnestly: "Weizhen, you should No—you really came to chat with me, didn’t you?” Xu Guo's reaction was also cautious. However, his personality was relatively strong, and his status was not as high as that of Shen Shixing, so he didn't have so many scruples. He just lowered his voice and said without much reservation: "Old Grandpa ——The old grandfather must have known about the rumors from the palace; Concubine Zheng Dezhi was in the back seat, and if she really let her give birth to a prince, there will be troubles in the future! Long live God's frequent absence from court is not a long-term solution after all. ——Once the old grandfather was the chief assistant and shouldered the great responsibility of the world, he must have a way to prevent and control it. If he is sent, he will die as an official!" Shen Shixing heard him talking, but his eyelids gradually closed, and finally waited for him to finish speaking, and then slowly opened them again, with a blank look in his eyes, and he coughed dryly in his throat after a long time With a sound, he cupped his hands and said, "I hope Weizhen can teach me how to prevent and treat it!" After he said this, it was Xu Guo's turn to be stunned, and he said after a while: "The old ancestor may lead the ministers to write a letter..." Shi Shixing responded with a wry smile, and said repeatedly: "Maybe you can give it a try, or you can give it a try..." Xu Guo saw that he was full of promises, but his expression was different, so he asked, "Is there something wrong with my old grandfather?" Shen Shixing coughed dryly twice, but did not answer his question. Instead, he called his family members up and ordered him to wait on him. In this way, Xu Guo knew that the purpose of his trip was in vain, so he stopped talking. As soon as the chess game is set up, I play chess to pass the boring time.Shen Shixing's chess strength was originally superior to Xu Guo's, but this time he somehow lost three games in a row, without even a chance to wrench a wrench. Although Xu Guo won easily, there was a sense of loss in his heart for no reason, as if winning the three games of chess was disgraceful; therefore, after the three games of chess were over, he left in a disgruntled manner. It was still raining in the sky, and the feeling of dampness was very sad; Shen Shixing watched Xu Guo stepping on the drenched rain and stepping into the sedan chair that had been carried into the atrium. When the curtain of the sedan chair was lowered, he didn't know it. An unusually calm voice came out: "Weizhen, are you intentionally or unintentionally trying to trap me into a doom?" As he thought about it, the corners of his mouth on his thin face, which had always looked modest and didn't change much, suddenly twitched twice, and a chill rose from the bottom of his heart. "Could it be that you want to use this method to get me down? You—coveted my seat—but it's too early!" With a sneer in his heart, the expression on his face was of course even colder; fortunately, Xu Guo had already got on the sedan chair, so he didn't see his expression at all, let alone hear his voice. The secret thought in Shen Shixing's heart was only him. I know it by myself. However, even though he thought that he could grasp everything about Xu Guo in his heart, when he turned around and walked towards the study, his steps were more heavy, strenuous, and even faltering; He is overwhelmed. He doesn't care that Xu Guo covets his position. Xu Guo is quick-tempered and strong-minded. He lacks the grace and generosity that civil servants should have, and often conflicts with officials. These few shortcomings alone are not enough. Competitive, how can you take away your seat?What's more, let alone a country of Xu, even counting all the courtiers who coveted his own seat, he also has the confidence to deal with it-there is only one chief assistant, and the cabinet ministers covet this only seat, and do everything possible to replace it. Which day has it not passed?When is there not a secret struggle going on?Fighting openly and secretly among ministers is a common thing at all. Since I have the ability to sit in this seat, I will also have the ability to deal with the flies that fly to this seat to smell the fragrance... What is really difficult to deal with is the emperor - the emperor's heart is also a needle in the sea, extremely elusive, and if the elusive is wrong, it will lead to unexpected disasters and terrible endings. Zhang Juzheng’s Yin prison is not far away—in fact, it’s not just Zhang Juzheng; in this dynasty, which is the most authoritarian and totalitarian in China’s history, almost all the courtiers who dared to speak out and speak uprightly did not end well; as early as the founding of the Taizu In the early days, the heroic officials were massacred, and the court system was created, so that the ministers who were officials in the court had no personal dignity at all... "Alas! Counting with your fingers, you have gone through twenty-three years in your official career..." He was a Jinshi in the 41st year of Jiajing, and he has indeed been an official in the court for 23 years. Apart from the first one or two years of exploration for the first Jinshi, he upholds his own insight into the world and reality. According to the principle of "Xiangyuan" determined after the environment, everything went smoothly, and the position of the first assistant was also firmly in hand. "How should I deal with myself in the future?" Standing in front of the majestic picture of "Dongtian Mountain Hall", he looks even thinner, with more wrinkles on his face, whiter beard and hair, and more gloomy expression; he is thinking hard, and the heavy pressure makes him His back seemed even more hunched. What Xu Guo said is not wrong. Emperor Wanli often does not go to court, and Concubine Zheng De is in the back seat. There will be troubles in the future-as the chief assistant, shouldn't I think of ways to prevent these crises from happening? However, what will happen to Emperor Wanli's reaction? Would he listen to harsh advice when he was young?Are you willing to give up the pleasures in front of you and be diligent in political affairs? "Difficult——difficult..." A tiny voice trembled from his lips, the chill in his heart deepened, and scenes that often happened in this dynasty floated in front of his eyes: taking off the black gauze hat, taking off the official uniform, being pushed down by the eunuchs to the ground, with his head Down, sticking to the ground, with back facing up, the eunuchs firmly pressed the limbs tightly, and then hit the body with heavy wooden sticks, and the eunuch in charge of counting shouted loudly: one, two, three, four ... If I disobeyed Emperor Wanli, my end would already be in front of me; not only would I lose the glory, wealth, power, and status of the current Chief Assistant, but I would lose my official position if I was in the slightest, and the imperial staff in the middle, and I would be executed if I was serious. ——The more he thought about it, the darker his eyes narrowed, and the more he bent his back, making him look even smaller standing in front of the calligraphy and painting that expressed the seclusion of mountains and forests, and his high morals... The patter of rain has been falling.

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