Chapter 280 is related to Yan Shenggong’s Mansion (6100 words long chapter)
Because people caused trouble and smashed grain shops, the grain shops that were still open in the capital were closed one after another.
Food shortages have become more serious.
And at this time.
In a Shandong guild hall in the capital, a bearded man walked up to an elegant scribe: "Sir, are you back?"
The scribe didn't even raise his head. He just continued to admire an ancient ring in his hand and asked, "Did the Ministry of Punishment let you out so soon?"
"The common people petitioned outside the Ministry of Punishment, but the officials of the Ministry of Punishment could not withstand the pressure and had to release us first," said the bearded man.
The scribe smiled faintly and continued to ask: "Are all the grain shops in the capital closed?"
"It's all closed! It's estimated that the people in the city will be without food in a few days!" the bearded man replied.
"Very good. Mr. Kong's plan is half successful. If this sum is made, it will be a profit of more than 5 million silver dollars. Then you will be indispensable. I will ensure that you have food and clothing for the rest of your life. You continue to play the role of a mob outside. Make a fuss, our Majesty always loves the people very much and will not do anything to you. The more you make trouble, the more anxious your Majesty and the court will be. Then naturally, the price will be whatever we shout!" the scribe ordered! road.
"Yes!"
The bearded man said, and after thinking for a while he couldn't help but ask: "But, Master, do you think His Majesty will not buy it with money, but directly rob it, or even encourage the people to rob the grain store!"
"If Your Majesty wants to break the rules, he will break the foundation of the Ming Dynasty and offend all the merchants in the world. It is not illegal for us to sell it at a high price, and his court has no reason to forcibly take away our food. As long as Tongzhou doesn't get caught. Just a handle! ”
Not long after the scribe said this, another monk came in: "Sir, what happened in Tongzhou was successful. Most of the two million stone grains were burned by us, and the few sergeants we bribed have also been silenced."
"I know, I will give your temple 100,000 silver dollars in sesame oil money when the time comes!"
As he spoke, the scribe added: "Now let's see how Mr. Kong talks with Yuwen Zhong from the Ministry of Household Affairs!" Immediately, he laughed again and couldn't help but look out the window, looking at the poor people who were already weak from hunger. , as if he was admiring a masterpiece created by himself.
But just as the scribe was admiring it, the sound of horse hooves was heard, and many officers and soldiers appeared, pulling cart after cart of sweet potatoes in with carriages, and placed them directly on the square of Daming Gate. Officials in Qingyi are setting up porridge sheds.
After a while, the scribe saw the sergeant pouring a bag of rice into a pot under the command of the household official, and pouring more something that looked like taro.
The scribe couldn't help but asked seriously: "What is that?"
"Sweet potato! I heard that Marquis Jianchang brought it back from outside. Now it is only promoted in the Gyeonggi area, and is mostly grown by farmers in Huangzhuang and the suburbs of Beijing." At this time, someone replied.
The scribe secretly muttered "Sweet potato!" For a moment, he became a little worried.
……
And this time.
Officials from the Ministry of Household Affairs have begun to distribute sweet potato porridge to the poor in the capital. Sweet potatoes can satisfy hunger and are cheap. Even if they give alms for several months, it will not be a problem. This will give the court enough time to help these poor people regain a stable life. A small amount of porridge. Then it can be regarded as not making the poor miserable and not being able to eat even half a grain of rice.
In addition, sweet potatoes are also sold in the main gathering places of each city gate, and are sold at the price of one yuan per stone. Compared with the price of food, which has increased by nearly three yuan per stone, this can be said to be a free gift.
Of course, one dollar per stone was higher than the price paid by the Ming Dynasty court to purchase it from the people.
And the common people have no complaints, because the cost of sweet potatoes is also low. When grown in some barren mountainous areas that cannot be cultivated at all, the cost is lower than the cost for the common people to chop a bundle of firewood.
anyway.
The selling price of sweet potatoes is one yuan per stone. For the people in the capital, even the lowest class people can buy one stone to feed themselves for several days.
certainly.
The scholars and people in the capital were still somewhat resistant to this new food.
Fortunately, Zhu Houzhao took the initiative to eat sweet potatoes first, and officials from the cabinet and various ministries took the lead in eating sweet potatoes, which made it easier for the people to accept sweet potatoes as a crop and began to eat sweet potatoes one after another.
"Your Majesty has an edict. Because two million stone cans were used to transport grain, the price of food in the capital has soared. But fortunately, your majesty has already reserved ten million stone (exaggerated for political purposes to calm people's hearts) sweet potatoes. The people can Don’t worry about hunger, just use sweet potatoes to survive the famine! Your Majesty has ordered the Grain Industry Bureau to send another three million shi of rice to Beijing, and then sell it at the same price as in the 12th year of Zhengde!”
The imperial literati in the Attendance Room began to convey the latest arrangements of the imperial court to the people at the city gates.
As a result, the people's sentiment in the capital was greatly stabilized.
……
The scribe who secretly colluded with Mr. Kong had a dark face and said angrily: "Ten million stones! When did the imperial court prepare so many sweet potatoes that can be eaten for cooking?"
"Yes, sir, it's no problem even if you're hungry," his men replied.
"As a result, the food we have hoarded will not be able to be sold at a high price, and we will fail in our efforts!" The scribe said angrily.
"Master, why don't we burn the grain again?" his men suggested.
"It's not that easy. Let's wait for Mr. Kong's arrangements," the scribe couldn't help but say.
……
At this time, in the royal Xiyuan dining room exclusively for the royal family, when Zhu Houzhao came in after handling the government affairs, many imperial concubines were already sitting in the whole room, while Queen Mother Zhang was still sitting firmly in the middle, and Zhu Houzhao was still sitting as the queen. Looking up at the bowl of sweet potato rice, I couldn't help but smile and said: "This is the first time I have eaten this sweet potato rice in Ming Dynasty. It is rare for me to eat this by mouth!"
The queen couldn't help but smile and said: "There is also this potato and beef. Your Majesty, please try it too. The imperial kitchen made it according to your instructions. It is also very delicious. I want to say that this potato is even more delicious than this sweet potato." , can not only cook but also cook, why didn’t Your Majesty let them promote potatoes first?”
"It doesn't conflict. It's the same after harvesting sweet potatoes and then planting potatoes." Zhu Houzhao said and took a bite first. It was very delicious. Only Liu Jin couldn't help but pretend to be coy on the side, wiping tears and said: "I don't know who killed it." The thief actually burned so much food that the Queen Mother, Your Majesty and all the other ladies in the palace could only eat sweet potatoes to satisfy their hunger!”
Seeing this, Zhu Houzhao couldn't help but glared at Liu Jin: "You stand outside and come in again after crying enough. The royal family eats sweet potatoes first to set an example for their subjects. What do you know!"
"It's rare for Eunuch Liu to be loyal. Your Majesty, you shouldn't blame him," Queen Xia said with a smile and then added: "After all, I followed you to Guangdong and Guangxi, and gave you two more maids, didn't I?"
Not long after Queen Xia said that, Liu Jin, who had just left, walked in: "Your Majesty, Yu Wenzhong, the minister of Cangchang, wants to see you."
When Zhu Houzhao saw that it was Yu Wenzhong, he remembered that he had said before that Yu Wenzhong could meet with him directly regarding the recent matter of raising food. Now that he saw Yu Wenzhong asking for an audience, he put down his chopsticks and ordered: "Let him come here. Move the screen!”
After a while.
Yu Wenzhong stood behind the screen: "Chen Yu Wenzhong has met His Majesty!"
"It's already noon, have you had your meal?" Zhu Houzhao asked.
Yuwen Zhonglian said no.
"In that case, give him a bowl of sweet potato rice and a bowl of beef with potatoes. You can try it. It tastes good. It's a new product from the Imperial Kitchen. Even if you go to the best restaurant in Beijing now, you won't be able to taste this dish!"
Zhu Houzhao said.
Yu Wenzhong has been worried about his death and has no appetite at all, so he can only say: "Please forgive me, Your Majesty, I really have no appetite!"
"In that case, let's get down to business. Do you have a way to raise food?" Zhu Houzhao asked.
"Your Majesty is wise. There is a businessman named Kong who has two million stones of grain in his hands, which he plans to transport to Liaodong in exchange for salt. Now seeing that the price of grain in the capital is quite high, he intends to sell it," Yu Wenzhong said.
"For those who know how to do business!"
After Zhu Houzhao said something with a smile, his expression turned cold, and he thought to himself: "For a businessman named Kong, how lucky is Liaodong for salt?"
Immediately.
Zhu Houzhao still acted quite calmly. He said oh and asked again: "At what price does he plan to sell it?"
"One stone, three yuan and five cents, a total of seven million silver dollars!"
Yuwen Zhong replied.
"He is very good at raising prices. This is five cents higher than the current price of grain in the capital. Seven million silver dollars are exchanged for two million stone grain. Even if the Ming Dynasty's treasury is full, it cannot sustain such consumption. You continue to talk to him and try to reach an agreement. About five million, I might be able to agree!”
Zhu Houzhao ordered.
……
That night.
Zhu Houzhao called Gu Dayong from the Xichang and ordered: "In the Xichang, you should pay close attention to Mr. Kong who was in contact with Yu Wenzhong and find out where his food is. These businessmen are very powerful and can actually control the capital." The price of food is controlled to three yuan per stone! If it weren’t for the timely appearance of sweet potatoes, I would really have to spend seven million silver dollars to buy food!”
"The minister obeys the order!" Gu Dayong retreated.
……
And this time.
More and more sweet potatoes and potatoes are being shipped into the city.
More and more people are beginning to accept the sweet and delicious sweet potatoes and potatoes.
"The price of sweet potatoes will be reduced to seven cents per stone, and the price of potatoes will be reduced to one cent per stone!" shouted a shopkeeper of the government-run Grain Bureau.
then.
The people were buying like crazy, and the food shortage problem was solved. Even if they were not tired of sweet potatoes, the Ministry of Household Affairs began to mobilize some food to Beijing and sell it in batches at a low price. Although it was a small amount, the people could at least taste it. The taste of rice noodles.
Mr. Kong, who had returned to the Shandong Guild Hall, could not help but darken his face: "We spent two million silver dollars to purchase grain, plus the cost of bribes. We were originally going to wait until the price of grain in the capital was high to sell it. Now the court suddenly If this happens, we will fall short!”
"Yongchang Hou couldn't bear the pressure anymore and reopened the store to sell grain, and the price was reduced to two yuan, five yuan per stone!" said the scribe who had appeared in the Shandong Guild Hall before.
"This Marquis of Yongchang, ignore him. Let's wait and see. I don't believe that the imperial court will not be able to finish all the sweet potatoes! Even if it is said to be ten million stones, only stupid people will believe it!"
Mr. Kong said with a sneer.
Ten days later.
Another batch of sweet potatoes arrived in Beijing, and the price of sweet potatoes was reduced to one cent per dan. In addition, the Ministry of Household Affairs also transported a batch of 200,000 dan of grain from Shanxi to Beijing, forcing grain merchants who opened grain stores one after another. The price of food was reduced to two yuan per stone.
After all, food also has a shelf life, and the longer it is stored, the faster it will depreciate.
And Mr. Kong, who owned two million stones of grain, had no choice but to agree to Yu Wenzhong and prepared to sell it to the court for five million silver dollars.
But Zhu Houzhao regretted it again and said:
"Now that the price of food has dropped to two yuan per stone, it is naturally not cost-effective to buy two million stones for five million silver dollars. Tell him that for three million silver dollars, the court will buy him two million stones of grain at one time. Otherwise, when the time comes, he will Two million shi of grain can only depreciate to the level of Zhengde’s 12th year!”
Mr. Kong naturally refused. After all, he expected to earn more than five million silver dollars from this hoarding. If he only sold three million silver dollars, he would not make much, and it would be like working in vain.
However, ten days later, another batch of sweet potatoes and potatoes were shipped to Beijing. The price of sweet potatoes dropped to one third of a stone, and the price of potatoes also dropped sharply.
Even the lowest worker can buy a stone of sweet potatoes and take home with just one day's wages.
Moreover, in addition, the imperial court also slowed down and transferred another batch of grain to Beijing, causing the price of grain in the capital to drop again to the level of one yuan and seven cents.
This time Mr. Kong found Yuwen Zhong again and asked to sell it for three million silver dollars.
Zhu Houzhao refused. Because there was a bumper harvest of grain from the fields outside the Great Wall, the cabinet had already transferred 500,000 shi of grain from outside the Great Wall to Beijing. It would not be a problem to hold on until the grain came to Beijing. He said that if Mr. Kong wanted to sell 2 million shi of grain to the imperial court, he could only For two million silver dollars.
"No! This is absolutely not possible. Two million silver dollars means we have made nothing, plus the cost of bribes, we are still losing money! This, this is not possible!"
At this time, before Mr. Kong could speak, the scribe Sun Juren who followed him rejected the court's proposal.
"Burn all the purchased old grain! At that time, transport the new grain to the capital and sell it for three yuan and one stone. The dignitaries in the capital can't just eat sweet potatoes all the time. They can afford three yuan and one stone of grain. ", said Mr. Kong.
then.
Three days later, in a manor in Fengrun County, hundreds of thousands of old grain stones were transported from the warehouse and began to be piled on the firewood pile to be burned.
One of Mr. Kong's shopkeepers named Yin Mo couldn't help being shocked when he saw this and asked: "Mr. Kong, why do you want to burn these grains!"
"If you don't burn it, it will only lower food prices!" Mr. Kong said.
"Mr. Kong, this goes against the law of heaven. Although these grains are old grains, giving them to the people is considered a meritorious deed," Yin Mo said.
"Shopkeeper Yin, I didn't expect you to be kind enough to be a woman. Even if you burn five hundred thousand dan of food, you can't give it to those untouchables!"
As he spoke, Mr. Kong ordered his people to light the firewood piles and began to burn the bags of grain. The bags of grain flowed into the fire like a flood, and the aroma of grain began to permeate the entire flame.
"What a sin! These wealthy families would rather burn the grain than sell it at a low price!"
The people nearby couldn't help but sigh when they saw this.
At this time, a team of Jin Yiwei rushed in and cut off the arm of the man who was about to burn other stacks of grain on the spot. A Jin Yiwei named Shen Wenqi pointed at Mr. Kong with a Xiuchun knife and said: "Who gave you the courage to burn so much food!"
Mr. Kong couldn't help but be shocked. He didn't expect that Jin Yiwei would suddenly appear, and he didn't know what to say for a moment.
……
"These profiteers are really outrageous! The people in the capital are short of food, and all regions have to squeeze out grain and transport it to Beijing. Even grain from border towns is transported to Beijing, but these profiteers would rather burn the grain than sell it at a lower price! It's really disgusting. ! ”
The chief minister of the cabinet was extremely angry when he found out about this.
And the second assistant Wang Qiong couldn't help but sigh.
Zhu Houzhao was relatively calm and only asked Gu Dayong: "Can we find out who is burning the grain? In addition, who is behind the price of grain in the capital this time? Can we find out?"
"Reporting to Your Majesty, Xichang has only inquired and found out that the mastermind of manipulating grain prices this time is Kong Wenyun. This person is after the Holy Master. Marquis Yongchang and Hussar General Zhu Jing are also involved in this case!"
"Catch him immediately. No matter who dares to destroy the foundation of our Ming Dynasty, he will not be spared. This Kong Wenyun, as a descendant of Confucius, can also do such scandalous things, or is he the mastermind?" Zhu Houzhao couldn't help but ask.
"Your Majesty, Duke Yan Sheng must not have known about this matter. It is inevitable to have such unworthy descendants!" Kang Hai saw that the matter involved Duke Yan's mansion and was deeply afraid that His Majesty the Emperor would use this to anger the saint's descendants, so he came over to help. Duke Yan Sheng said something nice.
……
Zhu Houzhao glanced at Kang Hai and knew Kang Hai's purpose. He just smiled lightly and said: "Then the Holy Duke Kong Yan also failed to educate him well. It is really disgusting for a descendant of a saint to have such a profiteer! The edict was drafted to ensure that the Holy Saint Due to the reputation of the descendants of the master, it is strictly forbidden for the descendants of Duke Yan to engage in business, otherwise they will be considered unfilial. ”
The cabinet ministers couldn't help but be shocked. They didn't expect the emperor to ban Yan Shenggong's right to do business, but they couldn't say anything because the emperor's reason was to protect the reputation of Confucius' descendants.
Nie Zhen, the Minister of Punishment, was even more anxious because of this. He could see that His Majesty was using this matter to suppress Duke Yan. He also knew that this showed that His Majesty was really dissatisfied with Confucianism, especially the lineage of Duke Yan, and Now, Kong Wenyun of Yanshenggong Mansion is still thinking about it after he fails to live up to expectations Hoarding and making a fortune, wouldn't this give His Majesty the opportunity to attack Yan Shenggong? Once Yan Shenggong's status is not guaranteed, it means that the status of Confucianism is even more precarious. Once this matter is publicized, it will only make the world think about Yan Shenggong. The corruption of the Shenggong Mansion was blamed on Confucianism.
"Go to Shandong quickly and give this to Duke Yansheng." Nie Zhen packed a bag of grain and handed it to his cronies.
at the same time.
Nie Zhen reported to Emperor Zhu Houzhao that criminal cases were handled by the Ministry of Punishment, so the suspects involved in manipulating grain prices should be transferred from Xichang to the Ministry of Punishment for interrogation.
Zhu Houzhao couldn't refuse. After all, this was indeed in line with the current judicial procedures of the Ming Dynasty. It was indeed the responsibility of the Ministry of Punishment to try suspects.
But Zhu Houzhao also understood that these civil servants must have the idea of protecting Yan Shenggong, so he also suspected that Nie Zhen was legally exercising his power as Minister of the Ministry of Punishment to request that the Ministry of Punishment be responsible for the interrogation of Kong Wenyun and others, and whether he wanted to secretly protect Kong Wenyun. .
……
"Gu Dayong, do you think anyone in the Ministry of Punishment knows Kong Wenyun?" Zhu Houzhao asked suddenly.
"Back to Your Majesty, according to a bearded man named Sun Tietou who once served in the Ministry of Justice, even if Kong Wenyun asked his Qing guest Sun Juren to come forward to deal with people in the officialdom, I think the ministers should not know him." Gu Dayong replied.
Zhu Houzhao nodded after hearing this, and after asking Gu Dayong, Liu Jin and Zhu approved the request of Nie Zhen, the Minister of the Ministry of Punishment, and transferred the suspect to the prison of the Ministry of Punishment.
This day.
Gu Dayong from Xichang personally brought a group of suspects to hand over to Nie Zhen, the Minister of Punishment. Nie Zhen first glanced at the prisoners behind Gu Dayong and asked: "May I ask my father-in-law, who is Kong Wenyun?"
"This is it!" Gu Dayong pointed at a prisoner and said.
Nie Zhen nodded and said no more.
……
However, a few days later, as soon as Zhu Houzhao finished his lunch, Nie Zhen came to the Royal West Garden to plead guilty: "I am incompetent! Please punish me! Last night, Kong Wenyun suddenly died suddenly!"
Zhu Houzhao couldn't help laughing after hearing this: "Really, Nie Qing, let me ask you, are you a minister of my Ming Dynasty, or a minister of his Kong family, or are you the real mastermind? Why did you want to destroy Kong Wenyun?" Mouth!”
"Your Majesty, why do you say this? I am of course a minister of the Ming Dynasty, and I would never dare to manipulate food prices," Nie Zhen said.
Zhu Houzhao shook his head, thinking that this was annoying in this era when there were no professional judges. Even the officials in charge of justice were Confucian civil servants. It was no wonder that these scholar-bureaucrats and Confucian ministers could avoid the constraints of the law.
"Bring Kong Wenyun up!"
When Zhu Houzhao said this, Nie Zhen couldn't help but be shocked. He understood it all at once, and couldn't help but secretly regret that he didn't go and ask Kong Wenyun personally who was brought to his punishment department by Xichang. Now, he seemed to be played by His Majesty. .
"Your Majesty, I, I just feel that this matter should not be too widely involved!" Nie Zhen said without confidence.
"Come here, take off Nie Zhen's black gauze hat and take him to the East Factory Inspectorate first! Keep Kong Wenyun in custody in the West Factory and interrogate him strictly!"
Zhu Houzhao originally thought that Nie Zhen could find out that Kong Wenyun was fake, and then understood that he, the emperor, was not easy to deceive, but he did not expect that Nie Zhen still underestimated him, and he couldn't help but shake his head.
But Zhu Houzhao still felt a little angry and thought to himself: "What benefits did the Kong family give these civil servants? How dare a minister dare to protect him like this! Or is there anything the Kong family can do to threaten these civil servants?"
Zhu Houzhao could only bury this doubt in his heart for the time being, but in any case, this incident made Zhu Houzhao realize that if he wanted to abandon Confucianism, he would have to give up a family that has been highly respected since Confucianism became orthodox. Pulling down the altar, that aristocratic family is Yan Shenggong's Mansion.
Now, in Zhu Houzhao's view, Kong Wenyun may be a breakthrough.
However, what Zhu Houzhao didn't expect was that just when he determined that Kong Wenyun was the culprit who burned the grain, Zhu Houzhao received a memorial from Kong Yanshenggong. The content of the memorial was that Kong Wenyun's father had hanged himself after hearing that his son had done such a harming thing. , and before hanging himself, he had taken the initiative to request that the people in his room be removed from the Yanshenggong family tree! He also took the initiative to plead guilty to himself as the emperor and expressed his willingness to donate 300,000 grains to Beijing to save the capital's emergency!
Nearly 20,000 words have been written today. The author went to rest. I am so tired. I feel that the quality of the subsequent writing has declined a bit. It is still not suitable for breaking out.
(End of chapter)