Chapter 88 Chapter 25

It's just October, the winter solstice has arrived, the weather in the capital is already a bit cold, and pedestrians put on cotton clothes sooner or later.On the evening of the second day of October, I saw two sedan chairs being carried to the front of Tianxiang Tower in Dengshikou.Sitting in the first sedan chair was a fifth-rank official, about forty years old, short and handsome, his name was Ai Mu, and he was a member of the Ministry of Criminal Justice Wailang.Sitting in the second sedan chair was a man in a sixth-rank official uniform. He was thirty-five or sixteen years old.His name is Shen Sixiao, and he is a head of the Yamen of the Ministry of Punishment.The two sedan chairs landed at the entrance of Tianxiang Tower, and before people got out of the sedan chairs, they heard a burst of firecrackers crackling and exploding the sky full of stars.The pungent smell of gunpowder smoke made Aimu cough for a while.Amidst the sound of firecrackers, I saw a large string of revolving lanterns with big red happy characters on them flying up and down around the sedan chair. A dozen children clapped their hands and sang in unison:

Master's promotion - hi! Opening a government office and building a government office——Happy! Melon Umbrella Opens the Way—Happy! Eight-faced majesty - hi! As soon as Ai Mu heard it, he knew that it was money to please. There are people who get promoted every year in the capital, and there must be a feast for every promotion.Therefore, a group of street gangsters found a way to ask for money, specially blocked the entrance of the restaurant, and sang "Song of Happy Words" around the official sedan chair.The people who came to the banquet may not all be promoted, but who in the world does not want to seek auspiciousness? At this time, although Ai Mu was in a bad mood, he still took out a handful of copper coins from his sleeve to reward.

Guided by the store staff, Ai Mu and Shen Sixiao went up to a large private room on the second floor.There were already five officials sitting in the room, all of whom were Ci ministers of the Imperial Academy. They edited Wu Zhongxing, reviewed Zhao Yongxian, served Zhao Zhigao, Zhang Wei and studied Confucianism.These young officials are well-known in the Hanmo market in the capital.Among this group of people, Ai Mu was a little older, and he was the only one who did not have Jinshi status.The reason why they associate with him is because Ai Mu was recommended as Fucheng's lecturer by the provincial examination.Because of his good knowledge, young scholars from neighboring counties often came to listen to his lectures. Many of them later passed the Jinshi examination, and there was even a man named Zhao Nanxing who competed for high school.This Zhao Nanxing is a Tanhualang, but he treats him very respectfully as a disciple.Aimu became famous for this.At the beginning of Wanli, he was appreciated by Zhang Juzheng and was recommended as a member of the Ministry of Criminal Justice Wailang.Since he came to the capital, he has had a close relationship with the Ci officials of the Imperial Academy.This afternoon, Wu Zhongxing posted a post asking him and Shen Sixiao to come to Tianxianglou for dinner.He had long heard about the matter of the Ci officials of the Imperial Academy wearing red robes and visiting Lu Tiaoyang in the cabinet, and wanted to take the opportunity to ask what happened, so he came here as promised.As soon as he entered the room, Wu Zhongxing stood up and shouted:

"Father and brother, you are finally here." "This afternoon, people from the Dali Temple came to the yamen to meet, so it's late for the end of work." Ai Mu bowed to everyone present, and said with a smile, "All the elites from the Imperial Academy have arrived, who is the treat?" "Me." Wu Zhongxing replied. "Why the treat?" "It's about keeping the system in charge of the chief assistant." "what?" Ai Mu was taken aback, then turned to Shen Sixiao who was standing behind him and said, "Brother Chunfu, this meal isn't very tasty."

Shen Sixiao and Zhao Zhigao present here are fellow villagers. Through his introduction, they have long become good friends with Wu Zhongxing and others.Shen Sixiao is not only aware of what these ministers have done recently, but is also an active participant, so he replied: "Today, birds of a feather probably flock together, otherwise Brother Zidao wouldn't have invited us to join in the fun." "Yes, I invite you to come, there is something important to discuss." After Wu Zhongxing finished speaking, invite everyone to a table.After a while, all kinds of dishes were put on the scene.On this day, Xianglou is good at making dishes outside the customs, and its signature dishes are braised bear's paw and roasted suckling lamb.Right now, there are big plates and bowls full of delicacies, especially the pot of simmering bear's paw and the roasted greasy, fat and tender suckling sheep, which are so steaming hot that everyone gulps down their mouths. Wu Zhongxing asked the shop assistant to leave After leaving the room, he personally held the jug and filled a glass of wine for everyone, saying:

"For this first glass of wine, let's toast someone." "Who do you respect?" Shen Sixiao asked. "Master Zhang." Wu Zhongxing's expression darkened suddenly, and he said guiltily, "Master Zhang refused to persuade the chief assistant to seize love. His integrity is commendable, and his integrity is commendable. However, when we went to the Ministry of Officials that day, we made a mistake. Let him go. Yesterday, the emperor ordered him to retire, and among the ministers of the Central Court, there was one less respectable figure, wouldn't it be heartbreaking, come, let's respect him for the first cup."

Wu Zhongxing picked up the wine glass with one stroke, and everyone followed his wishes, and they all threw up their necks and drank it.Ai Mu put down his wine glass and asked Zhao Yongxian sitting next to him: "Brother Ru, I heard that Chen Zan, the censor of Zuodu, suggested that the six departments should be combined to retain the chief assistant. Is there such a thing?" "Your news is outdated," Zhao Yongxian put down the chopsticks he was about to pinch the bear's paw, and replied, "Chen Zan was urged by Li Yihe, and wanted to contact the ministers of the ministry to persuade Zhang Juzheng to stay, but there was not much response. Yes. It’s not that the ministers of the Ministry are as upright as the heavenly official Zhang Han, but that Wang Guoguang and Wang Zhigao among them are all close friends of Zhang Juzheng, and it’s inconvenient to speak out. But there’s no need for them. This afternoon, Yu Shi Zeng, Shi Chu and Li Ke gave Chen Sanmo comfort notes during the incident, and they have been sent to Da Nei."

Hearing the news at first, Ai Mu snorted and changed his face. He gritted his teeth and scolded: "These scumbags, who are ignoring the country's principles and ethics, are proud of flattery. They really drive people to death." Among his colleagues, Ai Mu is notoriously stubborn. Zhao Zhigao present here is just the opposite of him. He is a peacemaker who calms things down. He took the opportunity to say: "He father and brother, Shoufu Mr. Zhang has made great contributions to the society in the past few years by rectifying the administration of officials, reforming taxes, and punishing the powerful. What do you think of this? You and Shoufu are from the same hometown of Huguang. Is it true that all Chu madmen are like this? act?"

Ai Mu replied: "Back then when Li Bai became the son-in-law of Xu Yushi, the abdicated prime minister, he spent ten years in Jiuyin Anlu. He wrote a poem himself saying, 'I am a madman from Chu, and Feng Ge laughs at Kong Qiu'. The superficial followers of Confucius and Mencius are called Chu madmen. This is really a great misfortune for my hometown. But when it comes to the current chief assistant, Chu madman is well-deserved. If things go on like this, the national guidelines will lose their gentle and honest style.” As soon as Ai Mu stopped talking, Wu Zhongxing, the host, persuaded everyone to drink a glass of wine and eat a few mouthfuls of food, and then he took up the conversation just now and said:

"What you said with your father and brother is justified. We, the little officials, have no chance to listen to Shoufu's talk about state affairs in person. I heard that you and your father and brother were summoned by Shoufu alone. Is there such a thing?" "Have." "What kind of person is Shoufu, can you tell us?" After hearing this, Ai Mu remained silent for a while.Because of that meeting, he really didn't want to mention it again. It is said that in the winter of the second year of Wanli, Zhang Juzheng asked the imperial decree to implement a severe "winter execution" in view of the frequent occurrence of traitors and robbers in various places and cases of plagiarizing the treasury and harming the people.The so-called "Winter Judgment" refers to the death penalty such as Lingchi or Dapi on the heinous criminals around the winter solstice.The imperial decree stipulated that there should be no less than ten "winter judges" in each province, which was Zhang Juzheng's idea.He knew that the provincial officials were all Confucian believers who had read the books of sages and sages. They emphasized the virtue of living well and nourishing themselves.It is almost a common mentality in official circles not to ask for "kill without pardon", but to build a seven-level pagoda.Zhang Juzheng hated such hypocrites very much. In order to make the "Winter Judgment" be implemented according to his intention, he decided to dispatch some smart officials from the Ministry of Criminal Affairs of the two capitals to various provinces to supervise the implementation of the matter.By the end of the year, more than 300 prisoners had been executed in all provinces.Zhang Juzheng is still not satisfied with this number.He pays attention to the criminal situation in various provinces on weekdays, and knows that the number of criminals who should be killed is far more than this number.But even this number exceeds the total number of prisoners in the "Winter Judgment" in the six years of the Longqing era.It should be known that this large-scale "Winter Judgment" was also the result of Zhang Juzheng's painstaking efforts.When he said that Wang Zhigao, Shangshu of the Ministry of Punishments, had submitted a plan for a large-scale winter execution, Empress Dowager Li was the first to object.She is dedicated to the Buddha, and has long cultivated the heart of a bodhisattva under the release of eminent monks such as monks.She disagreed with killing people, and even put forward a completely opposite plan to cancel this year's Winter Finals.The reason is that the little Wanli emperor ascended the throne for the first time, and according to the usual practice, he should amnesty the world.Zhang Juzheng is in the middle of the court, and he insists that Chen can't do it.The reason is that throughout the Longqing Dynasty, officials in various prefectures and counties were lax in political affairs, and there were too many cases accumulated.If heavy codes are not used, bandits and robbers will be rampant, and ordinary people will be in constant fear.Amnesty would be tantamount to condoning traitors, and the great governance of the world would only be like a dream in a mirror.Although the Empress Dowager Li was reluctant, she could not refute Zhang Juzheng, so she had to nod her head in agreement, and then issued the imperial decree agreeing to the Ministry of Punishment.It stands to reason that the results of last year's "winter execution" were satisfactory, but Zhang Juzheng found that only two prisoners were executed in Shaanxi Province in the records submitted by various provinces.In previous reports, Zhang Juzheng knew that Shaanxi Province was an area with frequent serious crimes.Why are the fewest prisoners executed in places where banditry is rampant? Zhang Juzheng ordered people to investigate the matter.According to a report from the Ministry of Criminal Justice, the person who went to Shaanxi to inspect this matter was Wailang Ai Mu, a member of the Ministry of Criminal Justice: Zhang Juzheng had heard about this Ai Mu for a long time, and he knew that he had good knowledge and character, so he took advantage of the opportunity of the Beijing inspection last year to remove him from the Imperial Academy. He was promoted to the Ministry of Punishment. Although he promoted Ai Mu, he had never met this person, so he decided to call him in and ask him what happened face to face.

When Ai Mu walked into the chief assistant's office at the appointment, Zhang Juzheng's sharp eyes swept over him, forcing Ai Mu to bow his head.Zhang Juzheng raised his head and asked: "I asked you to go to Shaanxi on business, how did you go?" Ai Mu was stunned for a moment. He could hear the obvious dissatisfaction in the tone of the chief assistant, so he timidly replied: "I would like to report to Mr. Chief Assistant, I went to Shaanxi to supervise the winter competition in a humble position, and nothing went wrong." "There was no mistake, why only two people were executed?" "There are only two people who have committed crimes, and they should be executed. Human life is a matter of heaven, and I dare not do anything in a humble position." Ai Mu lowered his voice as he spoke.He recalled the month in Chang'an in the winter of last year, where he checked the files every day, interrogated the criminals, and finally decided to execute the two men.Of the two criminals, one conspired with a married woman to commit adultery, and finally poisoned the woman's husband; the other was a robber who murdered and robbed, and committed many murders.When he expressed his thoughts, Shaanxi Taoist censor Wang Kaiyang suddenly opened his eyes wide, and raised his voice and asked, "Two? Only two, Mr. Ai, how can this be done?" "Why not?" Ai Mu retorted He sneered, "Just because of the Ministry of Punishment's message, you need to execute an extra sentence, right?" Yes." Ai Mu sneered, and replied: "Master Wang, human life is not a trifling matter, and a human head is not a loofah or cucumber. If you pick one, another will grow back. For more than a month, we have tried criminals. There were dozens of people who went to the court in person, after careful investigation, only these two criminals deserve to be executed." Ai Mu's tone was unquestionable, although Wang Kaiyang felt that he had taken advantage of it, he still didn't dare to agree, so he pointed Pointing to the file in front of him, he said: "Actually, there are still some criminals who should be killed. In my opinion, there are more than ten." Ai Mu has seen through Wang Kaiyang's mind.He said: "The meaning of the lower officials is that they can be killed or not, and they will not be killed at all. Don't worry, Mr. Wang. Although my official position is small, I am the supervisor from the capital after all. If this matter is investigated at the peak, I will bear all the responsibilities. "Because of Ai Mu's persistence, Shaanxi's execution of prisoners won the last place in the country.Yesterday, the Ministry of Criminal Justice informed him to come to the cabinet this morning to meet with the Chief Assistant. He reckoned that this must be the prisoner's decision, and he had already thought of a countermeasure in his heart. Zhang Juzheng saw that Ai Mu's thin face was blue, so he knew that this person was stubborn.Coupled with the long-term cleanliness of teaching seats, it is inevitable to be stained with sour and clean air.He was determined to kill the arrogance of this "talented scholar", so he pointed to a "study test book" on the desk and said, "Ai Mu, all your conversations with the censor Renkaiyang of Shaanxi are recorded in this test book." On the record." "The humble job knows." Ai Mu glanced at the test book, and his attitude was neither humble nor overbearing. But it is said that this "examination book" is also a great invention of Zhang Juzheng. From June of the sixth year of Longqing to the first year of Wanli, Zhang Juzheng's main energy was devoted to rectifying the administration of officials.In order to solve the phenomenon of slack in government affairs that has accumulated for many years, he pioneered the "examination method" to restrain officials.The content of this "examination method" is: all the daily official affairs of the government and the affairs in charge of each government office assigned by the emperor's decree must be handled by a dedicated person and completed within a time limit.Every thing done, its completion must be recorded in the book for inspection and verification.In the future, all officials will be promoted, resigned, rewarded or dismissed based on the records in this "examination book".Right now, Zhang Juzheng flipped through the dark blue-covered "Examination Book" in his hand, and said: "Shaanxi is a border province, where thieves have always been rampant. There are many treacherous people. The Ministry of Criminal Affairs sent you to supervise it. I hoped that you would do your best to uphold the law and constitution. Who would have thought that you still stick to the clean style and have a lot of benevolence like you, Isn’t everything about the imperial court going to be messed up, huh?” Zhang Juzheng's words were like fire, burning Ai Mu's face red, but he was not convinced in his heart, and muttered in a low voice: "The humble officer has been in Shaanxi for more than a month, reviewed hundreds of cases, and there are only two who should be killed. " "There are only two," Zhang Juzheng sneered, threw the test book on the desk, and reprimanded, "According to what you said, more than 20 people were killed in Huguang, Zhejiang, Shandong and other provinces. kill innocents?" "The humble staff didn't say that, but there are actually only two in Shaanxi!" "You keep saying that there are only two, but in Wang Kaiyang's memorial, there are seventeen who deserve to be killed." Zhang Juzheng picked up a memorial from the copy and shook it in front of Ai Mu's eyes.Obviously, in order to shirk responsibility, Wang Kaiyang has already reported his trickery. "On this matter, there is a disagreement between the humble official and Mr. Wang. The humble official thinks that the current emperor, who is the first to become a great treasure, should be generous and compassionate to all people. It is better to miss a thousand people than to kill one by mistake." Although Ai Mu was in awe of the chief assistant, he still murmured his views. His words were a bit outrageous. Zhang Juzheng slapped the desk angrily, and shouted sharply: "presumptuous!" Seeing that Shoufu was furious, Ai Mu hurriedly rolled off the chair and knelt on the ground.Zhang Juzheng originally wanted to let Ai Mu go to the Ministry of Criminal Justice to practice more for the sake of being a fellow villager, so that he could be reused in the future, but now it seems that his hope has failed.He stared at Ai Mu who was bowing his head and kneeling, and scolded: "The people who should be killed in Shaanxi are not just the seventeen people Wang Kaiyang said, nor the two you mentioned! Shaanxi is a border province, not to mention those criminals who commit crimes, murder and rob goods, but only the tea with other countries. Horse trading, there are as many young people who are desperate to take risks, they deserve to be put to death!" Zhang Juzheng said these words for a reason.It took a year and a half, and the rectification of officials has achieved initial results.At the beginning of the second year of Wanli, he will focus on fiscal reform.His whole mind is how to increase the revenue of the imperial court. On the one hand, he must put an end to the chaotic situation of tax evasion, smuggling and smuggling.Ai Mu didn't know what Shoufu was thinking, so he just followed his own train of thought and continued: "There are quite a few people like this, and there are still some in Shaanxi prisons. It's just that these smugglers are profiteers and shouldn't be capital crimes." "It's not a capital crime, how did you, a member of the Ministry of Criminal Affairs, become a foreigner, huh?" Zhang Juzheng stretched out his hand, and his words became more severe, "According to the "Law of the Ming Dynasty", if private tea leaves the country, it will not be guarded by the tea horse department and traded with tea horses." The prisoner and the gatekeeper were all put to death, and the whole family was sent to the army five thousand miles away, and the goods were sent to the government. During the reign of Emperor Hongwu, Ouyang Lun, the son-in-law captain, smuggled 20,000 catties of tea, and was given to death by the emperor. Even Queen Ma dared not intercede. , You, a member of the Ministry of Criminal Justice, do not know about such a big event? Go back and read the "Law of the Ming Dynasty" carefully, otherwise, if you don't apply for the law, you will still be full of reason." For Zhang Juzheng's reprimand, Ai Mu didn't take it seriously.He is a studious person, and he has read "Daming Law" by heart.Regarding what Zhang Juzheng said about Ouyang Lun, the son-in-law captain, selling private tea and bestowing on him to death, he also knew the whole process.In the Hongwu Dynasty, more than a thousand people were executed for privately trading tea, horses, and salt.It's just that since the Hongwu Great Expedition, after a few emperors, tea, horse and salt smugglers have intensified.Sometimes, some upright local officials or picket censors would ask the emperor to severely punish the matter, and the emperor also issued an order to investigate and deal with it.During the Jiajing and Longqing dynasties, no smuggler was sentenced to death.Therefore, although the provisions on smuggling in the "Law of the Ming Dynasty" have not been deleted, they are just empty words.Since Ai Mu took office as the head of the Ministry of Criminal Justice, he has done careful research on these allusions.From the bottom of his heart, he also hated smugglers who made a fortune, but at the same time, he had a deep-rooted thought in his mind that murderers pay for their lives, and believed that these smugglers did not kill, so they should not be treated as capital crimes.Facing the angry chief assistant at this time, he replied slowly: "Master Shoufu, although the lowly officials are dull, they are still familiar with the "Law of the Ming Dynasty". According to the "Law of the Ming Dynasty", there are indeed more than seventeen prisoners in Shaanxi as Mr. Wang Kaiyang said, and I am afraid that there are more than one hundred and seventy. .” "You understand?" Zhang Juzheng's face changed slightly. "The lowly official understands," Ai Mu moved a little because his knees hurt because he knelt too hastily just now, and then replied, "It's just that the "Law of the Ming Dynasty" is not in line with the current national conditions." Zhang Juzheng was startled, and asked: "What are the inconsistencies?" Ai Mu replied: "At the beginning of the founding of my country, Emperor Hongwu of the Ming Dynasty, in order to rule Liuhe and sweep away the evil spirits of the nine states in the world, so those who were greedy for fame, profit, officials, and sex were severely punished. Because of the situation in the country at that time After years of wars, the people's hearts are still in a state of impatience and frenzy. In order to save people's hearts and bring order out of chaos, Emperor Hongwu used heavy codes. The "Law of the Great Ming Dynasty" enacted under such circumstances is inevitably too strict. For example, the "Law of the Ming Dynasty" stipulates that common people are not allowed to wear silk drapes and short boots, and those who dare to violate the law will have to remove their feet. At that time, in Nanjing, there were three teenagers wearing trousers, because they were used on the trouser legs. The red silk was rolled to the side, and was reported to the government. Emperor Hongwu personally approved the decree, and the three teenagers were arrested and their feet were cut off. Today, the children of the common people all wear colored silk trousers. If you use "Da Ming "Law" to convict, not to mention other places, but only in the capital, I am afraid that half of the young people will have their feet cut off. Lord Shoufu, can the clause of "Daming Law" still be enforced?" Aim thought he was right, so he quoted scriptures and made a candid statement.Zhang Juzheng looked at him shaking his head as if he was lecturing "Zi Ri Poetry Cloud" in class, he was really annoyed and funny in his heart.From Zhang Juzheng's point of view, the examples Ai Mu gave seem to be reasonable, but they are not reliable. Compared with smuggling, they are even more irrelevant.Dressing is a matter of personal likes and dislikes, at best a matter of custom.But smuggling is different. It disrupts the country's major affairs and involves the national economy and people's livelihood.Which of the two is more important, you will know after a little weighing.But this Ai Mu insisted on digging into a dead end, and pushed Zhang Juzheng to the south wall with a few words.Zhang Juzheng listened to him with a deep breath, then lowered his eyelids for a moment of thought, and asked: "Ai Mu, how many months did you take the pepper and sumac salary last year?" "Looking back, Mr. Fu, like all Beijing officials, it's three months." "How much?" "This..." Ai Mu took a peek at Zhang Juzheng's ashen face, and replied, "Same as Tong Liben who hanged himself, two catties of pepper and two catties of sumac." "Oh, how were those three months?" "No, it's not easy." "You know, why do you need pepper and sumac to pay?" "There are no silver taels in Taicang." "Why is there no silver in Taicang?" "It is due to the accumulation of taxes over the years." "You know all of this!" Zhang Juzheng said with obvious teasing in his tone, "When the court spends money, what does it depend on? It depends on taxes! What do you officials rely on for food and clothing? It depends on salaries. The court is a big river, and the officials They are small rivers, the big river has water and the small river is full, and the big river has no water, so the small river will not dry up to the bottom?" What Zhang Juzheng said is common sense, how can Ai Mu not understand? He thought in his heart: Why did Mr. Shoufu suddenly change the subject, and instead of talking about the prisoner's case, he talked about finances? So he answered bravely: "The humble minister heard that it is difficult to recover the debts accumulated over the years." "Yes, it's hard for a clever daughter-in-law to live without rice!" Zhang Juzheng swallowed while looking at Ai Mu, and then said, "Arrears are one thing, but tax loss is another. Take Shaanxi as an example, Taozhou, Hezhou , Xining and other places have set up tea and horse divisions, which are directly under the jurisdiction of the household department. During the Hongwu period, the annual tax revenue of these three tea and horse divisions was as high as more than 600,000 taels of silver, and then it went from bad to worse. Do you know how much it is now?" "I don't know the poor official." Ai Mu answered honestly. "It's only over 200,000 taels! However, the scale of the tea-horse transaction is twice as large as that of the Hongwu period. Why did the transaction increase and the tax revenue decrease? On the one hand, the officials of the Tea-Horse Department are not strict in accepting bribes and enforcing the law. More importantly, It’s just that smuggling is becoming more and more rampant. If this trend can’t be controlled, how can the government’s finances not be stretched? How can Taicang not be empty? To reverse this decline, there is only one way for smugglers, kill them without mercy!” When Zhang Juzheng uttered the last three words, he was decisive and decisive. To Ai Mu's ears, it was simply earth-shattering.He was so shocked that he trembled all over, and when he was in a daze, he reluctantly replied: "Master Shoufu has a high-level view, and he analyzed it clearly. The humble official heard it like a revelation, but, it's just that the humble official feels..." "What do you think, tell me clearly." Seeing that Ai Mu was having a hard time opening his mouth, Zhang Juzheng urged him from the sidelines.Ai Mu suddenly felt smoke coming from his throat, he coughed a few times, and replied: "The lowly official understands the meaning of Lord Shoufu, and will shoot and kill those who smuggle and smuggle." "Exactly," Zhang Juzheng glanced at the file on the table again, and continued, "Last winter, although more than 300 people were killed, they were all gangsters who raped, robbed and murdered, and those who resisted taxes were smuggled. Not one of the smugglers was executed. This is very contrary to the emperor's will. Ai Mu, you go to Shaanxi again, and try again the smugglers who are detained in the prison, and kill as many as you can!" "Master Shoufu, I'm afraid the lowly official will be hard-pressed." "Why?" Zhang Juzheng's eyes widened. Ai Mu replied slowly: "The lowly official also hates those who seek profit and wealth. But hatred is hatred, and law-abiding is law-abiding. Benevolent government should be implemented, and authority should not be abused. What's more, the long-standing abuses of the Jiajing and Longqing dynasties could not be resolved overnight. Haste makes waste, this is the most reasonable administration. Smugglers are certainly hateful, but they can only be channeled In response to Wang Yundao’s suggestion, the Emperor Hongwu personally issued an imperial decree on the taxation of Cizhou iron mines, criticizing: "I have heard that there are no sages left behind in governing the world, and there are no left-behind benefits. Its benefits will benefit the source and benefit the officials. The official's exclusive benefits will block the source of benefits and will harm the people.' Regarding the matter of benefiting the court or benefiting the people, Emperor Hongwu's intention in this paragraph could not be more clear. Therefore, the humble official suggests..." Having said this, Ai Mu stopped suddenly.Because he found that Zhang Juzheng's two sword eyebrows were already frowned, and the blue veins on his forehead suddenly popped up, looking like a few big wriggling earthworms, he suddenly felt chills on his vest. Seeing that this petty official is so presumptuous, he not only offends, but also dares to teach him a lesson! Zhang Juzheng has long been boiled with anger.If Ai Mu hadn't brought out the imperial approval of Emperor Hongwu, Zhang Juzheng would have long wished to throw a teacup over.He called Ai Mu today because he wanted to give him another chance to return to Shaanxi to make up for his mistakes.Now his compassion for this little fellow has long since disappeared.He felt that talking about state affairs with this sour Qingliu was like playing the piano with a cow, and having made such a judgment in his heart, he suppressed his anger and said coldly: "Wang Zhigao, the official of the Ministry of Punishment, said that you are mature, prudent and decisive, and recommended you to be promoted to Yuanwailang, but he didn't know that you are so unrepentant. Come on, I don't think you can learn from Ban Chao, and you can't do the big thing of being a marquis. You should go back Reflect on your sagehood." Aimu drooped his head, and after a while he managed to utter a word: "That's very good, thank you Lord Shoufu." After saying that, he got up from the ground, bowed and backed out. After listening to Ai Mu's account of how he was summoned by Zhang Juzheng, all the officials present lost interest in drinking for a while.After a brief silence in the private room, Zhao Zhigao spoke first: "Since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, there have been so many chief assistants, but like Zhang Juzheng, he took the world as his own responsibility. He not only dared to oppose all the powerful and powerful, but also dared to despise all the scholars in the world. Apart from him, there is absolutely no one who dares to That's it. Shin Han is really reborn, it makes people shudder!" After taking Zhao Zhigao's words, he pondered and filially said: "This year's Winter Judgment, the chief minister's intention is to strictly handle it. The emperor got engaged two months ago, and the whole world is happy. Empress Dowager Li thinks that it is not auspicious to light up the blood in this year of great joy. Therefore, he suggested that this year's Winter Judgment should be canceled, but the chief minister firmly disagreed, thinking that the country has no strict laws, and there must be treacherous people. The Empress Dowager Li still accommodated the chief minister." "So, thousands of heads fell to the ground this winter?" Wu Zhongxing sighed. "That's right." Shen Sixiao said with resentment in his brows, "According to the practice in the second year of Wanli, the Ministry of Criminal Affairs sent officials to various provinces to supervise the handling. My father and brother and I were among them. I went to Zhejiang, and my father and brother still went to Shaanxi. .” "Are you still going to Shaanxi?" Zhao Yongxian turned around and asked Ai Mu, "Isn't this intentional to punish you? Whose idea is this?" "The chief assistant personally decided," Ai Mu smiled wryly, "He insisted that I go back to Shaanxi to supervise it. In his words, it is to make up for the mistakes." "What about you?" "It's still the same sentence, never kill innocent people indiscriminately." Zhao Yongxian felt that the dishes were cold and hard to swallow, so he called the shop assistant to let him take them out and reheat them.Hearing that the store clerk went downstairs, he said to Ai Mu: "I heard that your hall official, Wang Zhigao, is in-laws with Zhang Juzheng, but he doesn't agree with Zhang Juzheng, so he is quite straightforward. This time Zhang Juzheng's father's funeral, he is against seduction, is there such a thing?" "Yes," Ai Mu replied affirmatively, "The day before yesterday, Mr. Wang went to the Shoufu Mansion in Shamao Hutong to persuade him to go home and obey the rules and be filial to a son." "Does the chief assistant accept?" Wu Zhongxing asked. Ai Mu shook his head and said: "Master Wang looked very sad when he came back. He said that since Zhang Juzheng left Jiangling in the thirty-sixth year of Jiajing, he had not returned home for nineteen years, nor had he seen his father. My son, it's really hard to imagine that the feeling of disobedience lasted so long." Zhao Yongxian seemed to be inspired by it, and said: "The merits and demerits of the first assistant in charge of the government are not ignored today, but his act of seizing love is really against the heavenly relationship. How can I, a scholar in my generation, stand by and watch?" "What do you want?" Shen Sixiao asked. At this time, the waiter brought up the hot food and wine.Zhao Yongxian poured wine for everyone and said: "Drink this cup to the brim, all of you, and then listen to Brother Yu." Everyone had their cups to drink, Zhao Yongxian poured another cup by himself, and swallowed until there was nothing left, saying in dialect: "Brother Zidao drafted an excerpt, and brother Yu followed suit. I invite you all to come today, and I just want to invite you to listen and discuss whether there are any considerations in these two excerpts." After hearing this, everyone present became excited, and they turned their attention to Wu Zhongxing.Wu Zhongxing got up and walked to the tea table under the window, picked up the book guard he brought with him, and took out a memorial from it. Everyone was in the officialdom. Looking at the cover of the memorial, he knew that it was a copy that had already been corrected. Title books—they are also title books, but the names and specifications are quite different.In February of the seventeenth year of Hongwu, Emperor Gao ordered the paper transfer method of various divisions. Now it has been almost two hundred years, and it has not been changed.For the first-rank and second-rank yamen, the paper used for writing transfer is divided into three grades. The first grade is two feet five inches high and five feet long; the second grade is four feet long; the third grade is three feet long.From the third grade to the fifth grade yamen, the paper used for writing is two feet high and two feet eight inches long.Six-rank and seven-rank yamen, Wenyi paper is one foot and eight inches high and two feet and five inches long. These are all fixed formulas.The Secretary of the General Administration receives memorials from various places every day, and one can tell which class they belong to by looking at the specifications.The manuscripts of officials are also implemented according to this formula.Both Wu Zhongxing and Zhao Yongxian were fifth-rank officials, so they used a four-button title book that was two feet high and two feet eight inches long.Wu Zhongxing carefully brought back the inscription, and said to all the friends present: "Zeng Shichu and Chen Sanmo's proposal for the first assistant to win the love has been sent to the imperial court. We have different opinions, and the pawn has to say something. Therefore, I and Brother Ru is discussing to submit a booklet each, and mine is roughly written, let’s read it here first to see if there is anything wrong with it.” As he spoke, he began to read: Looking up to His Majesty the Emperor: I learned that the imperial censor Zeng Shichu, and the officials in charge of affairs, Chen Sanmo and other Shangshu emperors proposed to be upright and seductive. I secretly think it is impossible. Let me try to describe it as follows: Juzheng's father and son were separated in different places, and their voices and appearances were inconsistent for nineteen years.Once abandoned thousands of miles away, your majesty will not let the prostrate star run away, but mourn with the coffin, you will want him to suppress his feelings against his will, and mourn his pain on the temple, and he will be responsible for criticizing Mo Yuanyou and adjusting Yuan Xizai. Love too! Ju Zheng always said that he would abide by the principles of the sages and sages, and the laws of his ancestors.Zaiwo wants to mourn for a short time. Ziri: Have you loved your parents for three years? The prince asks for a few months of mourning.Mencius said: Even if you add one more day, you will get better.What about the teachings of sages.Although there are gangsters in the law, there is a ban on hiding funerals.But the military man got Mo Ling to do it, not because he was there to assist the prime minister.That is to say, when the cloud rises, there is a story: there is no one who does not go abroad for a day and suddenly rises to see things.How about the system of the ancestors? It is an eternal rule, and the audio-visual of the Quartet.But today there is no overreach, and then there will be no legacy in the world.There is no way to sell and change.Minister Wu Zhongxing bowed down. As soon as Wu Zhongxing finished reading, Zhao Yongxian took out two pieces of paper from his sleeve, and said: "Young Brother's Gushu is just a draft, it has not been written into a manuscript, so I might as well read it to everyone." Shaking the paper away, he coughed and read: The ministers are in the right place, and they can be loyal to the monarch and ministers for several years, but your majesty is suddenly defeated.Mo Ruo imitated the stories of Yang Bo and Li Xian in the previous dynasty, and listened to them temporarily returning to the system, and went to the palace immediately.The concubine's father and son have obedient voices and appearances, and they have been blocked for ten or nine years, but they only stretch their pain a little, and they mourn in the coffin at the Lin acupoint.The state set up a platform to advise and correct the ropes based on judicial discipline, but the two ministers Zeng Shichu and Chen Sanmo actually asked Xiao Xiao to stay as their assistant ministers.The ministers are foolish and fear that morale will decline day by day, and the day when the country is right is wrong. It seems that Zhao Yongxian's essay has not yet been echoed, but it can be heard that the words are more angry than Wu Zhongxing's excerpt.This is also the routine of debate in the officialdom, which is mild at first and then intense.It is a tradition of scholars to express their political opinions on major issues of right and wrong in the imperial court, attacking the power and impeaching the dignitaries.Although the speaker is often relegated or even lost his life, there are still people who do it.Because with the passage of time, those who stand up for the "orthodoxy" will often become figures admired by scholars if they can escape from death.The seven people sitting here today are all young and middle-aged scholars who are like-minded, full of scholarly spirit to make a name for themselves, so it is not surprising that they disagree with Zhang Juzheng.Ai Mu was the oldest in this group, and the city was deeper. He took the two essays and read them again, and then asked Wu Zhongxing: "When will your notebook be delivered?" "Early tomorrow morning, I will hand in the fold in front of the Meridian Gate." Generally, all official documents are handed over to the Secretary of Communications, but this is slow.If the delivery is urgent, the officials will deliver it in front of the Meridian Gate by themselves, and the eunuch on duty here will immediately send it to the Qianqing Palace.If the eunuch on duty refuses, the officials will beat the Dengwen drum here.The sound of the drum can be heard throughout the Forbidden City. "So, Brother Ru's excerpt will follow up later?" Ai Mu asked again. "Yes, the day after tomorrow at the latest." Zhao Yongxian replied. "Have you two thought about the consequences?" "I've thought about it," Wu Zhongxing replied, "The worst outcome is just being expelled from the capital, but I don't think that's the case." "Why?" "The emperor is still young and doesn't know the consequences of seizing love. If we explain the truth clearly, the emperor may accept it." "If it is adopted, of course everyone will be happy, but what if it is not adopted?" "Furthermore." "Who will go up?" Ai Mu's tone was serious, and he sneered kindly, "If you are arrested by Jin Yiwei, can you still go up?" "Then..." Wu Zhongxing was speechless. Seeing that the atmosphere was not right, Zhao Zhigao said, "He and father and brother are making alarmist talk. The little emperor and Empress Dowager Li have always paid close attention to discussions, and things are not so bad." Wu Zhongxing thumped the table angrily, and yelled like an oath: "Even if it is so bad, I, Wu, will not hesitate." "It's so good!" Ai Mu raised his eyebrows, and with a rare smile on his face, he said, "Brother Zidao, if you and senior brother Ru play the two excerpts and still fail to make the emperor change his mind, the third excerpt will be played." Let me, Aimu, come on." "And me." Shen Sixiao immediately added. Wu Zhongxing is a man of temperament, seeing Ai Mu and Shen Si Xiaoken standing up to respond to them, he was very excited, so he shouted for the shop assistant to sift the wine in a big pot, and the seven of them drank several glasses in high spirits. Feeling a little drunk, he raised his voice and said: “你们翰林院这班文臣，都是诗词歌赋的高手，今日趁着酒兴，我也斗胆班门弄斧，填一阕词来献丑。” 众人听罢一起拊掌欢呼，吴中行吩咐店伙计搬来纸笔墨案。艾穆趋上前去，拣了一管长锋的羊毫，饱濡浓墨在纸上写下墨气酣畅的三个行书大字：金缕曲。 接着笔走龙蛇，纸上竟腾起风雷之声： 散发走通衢，问今日，燕市悲歌，何人能续?国遇疑难风乍起，忍看乱云飞渡。待我辈，振臂一呼。残漏荒鸡听夜角，太平岁，依旧有城狐。景山上，红叶疏。 耿耿襟抱愤难诉，怅长空，月沉星隐，更无烟雨。幸有儒臣疏两道，胜却万千词赋。开尽了，世人眼目。 明日帝都腾侠气，扶社稷，方为大丈夫，何惧怕，雁声苦。 写罢，艾穆又用他亢急的湘音吟诵了一遍，虽是急就章，倒也写尽情怀，众人无不叫好。吴中行朝艾穆一揖，言道： “蒙和父兄鼓励，明日一早，我就去午门投折子去，我还留下一个副本，待把折子投进大内后，再去纱帽胡同，把副本送到首辅手中。” “你为何要这样?”艾穆问。 “明人不做暗事。” 吴中行说着，又嚷着要酒。赵志皋看他似有些醉了，便劝阻不要再喝了。双方争执不下，一直闹到夜深散去。