The sun was setting in the west, the twilight was floating with golden light, and the day was coming to an end. The plum garden was shining with sunset light, surrounded by rockery ponds, and it was truly beautiful. However, Shi Wende did not have the mood or courage to appreciate the beautiful scenery. He just lowered his head and looked at the cloth.
In front of the political envoy Wang Zhe, he sipped the tea in small sips, neither daring to drink too quickly to lose his etiquette, nor daring to drink too slowly to procrastinate. The study became silent for a moment, and you could almost hear the drop of a needle.
"Dongfan Kingdom, tribute from the Dongfan barbarians... Zhejiang City Ship Division, mention the middle official of Shibo Division... Hmm... let me think about it..."
"At present, the court is full of people, and the saints are kind and accept remonstrances. Come to think of it, the middle officials don't dare to act recklessly and start tribute and sea trade randomly! If I find out, a memorial is posted, and the gentlemen and benevolent people work together, these middle officials will definitely be allowed to...
Let’s drop some more white-faced and beardless treacherous heads!…”
The chief envoy Wang Zhe drank tea slowly, his expression flashing with thought. Since the founding of Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty, the tributes from vassal states have always been mostly promoted by the officials in the inner court. Because this kind of "tribute" has always been promoted by the officials.
The most desired great achievements. The middle-ranking officials only need to be responsible to the emperor. The emperor will be "overjoyed" when he sees all the nations come to court, and the middle-ranking officials will naturally receive rewards and awards of power and status!
However, this kind of "paying tribute and opening up frontiers" is not necessarily a "good political achievement" of the scholar-bureaucrats in traditional understanding, especially the acceptance of overseas tribute that is "unprofitable and has nothing to do with the country." The entire group of scholar-bureaucrats in the Ming Dynasty, the entire Ming Dynasty
The bureaucratic class has its own set of merit evaluation standards that are in line with "the way of the sages", "Zhu Xi's Neo-Confucianism", "farming and peace of mind", and "the interests of scholar-bureaucrats".
If the two "heroes" of "Taizong" and "Xuanzong" hadn't emerged, supported powerful middle-ranking officials and military attachés, and successfully suppressed the opposition of the entire scholar-bureaucrat group...then Zheng He's "immortal achievements" of seven voyages to the West would have been
It is completely impossible to achieve!
And now, under the imperial examination selection of the three dynasties of "Yingzong", "Xianzong" and "Jinshang", "famous ministers and wise men" are constantly emerging from the group of scholar-bureaucrats in the Ming Dynasty, expanding the power and influence of civil servants. These civil servants
The ability and level of millions of middle-aged people and the cobwebs of connections have made the group of scholar-bureaucrats in the Ming Dynasty stronger and stronger! It was not until the Hongzhi Dynasty in "this day" that the "civilian officials" finally completely suppressed the "central officials"
” and the “military officer” stood at the highest point of power!
It can be said that the civil service system of the Ming Dynasty, the most complicated and accumulated bureaucratic system in the world in this era, has formed the will of the group. Through "academic inheritance and scientific examination", through the selection of the smartest and top-notch people with the same ideology among tens of millions of people,
A group of "jinshi" and the civil service system finally, with the help of time, completed control over the entire Ming Dynasty!
If you select one of these elite candidates at random, five hundred years from now, he will still be able to become a big shot in the system step by step. On the other hand, if you catch a time traveler five hundred years from now, he will be thrown into the system.
At this time, among the scholars of the Ming Dynasty, under such a mature Ming Dynasty bureaucracy, they were probably as weak as dust!
Even if Shulot is left here, in the home of a noble prime minister, he may not be able to succeed. Even if he succeeds, it is almost impossible to reform the Ming Dynasty. Just think about it.
Feeling hopeless…
Even if the emperor of the Ming Dynasty was not capable enough and did not have enough skills and prestige to subdue the scholar-bureaucrat class, then no matter how many ministers and ministers he killed, it would be useless and he could not do anything. Even more extreme, it would be like
The two emperors who wanted to reform "drown for a long time and died of fear after falling into the water" against the background of strong opposition from the entire bureaucracy. The truth is difficult to explore, and the conspiracy theory part does not need to be extended. But in the end
As a result, all taxation reforms came to an end due to the emperor's changes...
"My emperor must be cautious when accepting tribute from overseas. This kind of luck is something that a gentleman will not take... What's more, when overseas vassals come to court, it is too easy to cause trouble in this coastal area. Once trouble occurs,
I will become the target of thousands of people!...This is not the end of the matter, but every time a vassal comes to court, there are risks!...In the end, the officials who initially accepted and recommended him will be held accountable..."
The chief envoy Wang Zhe lowered his eyelids, and within a moment, he weighed the pros and cons clearly. Once he accepted the tribute, he would dig a big hole for himself and even harm future generations. Then it was clear how to choose.
"Lord Fantai..."
After a while, Shi Wende finally drank the tea and bowed his head again to salute. The chief envoy Wang Zhe sat on a chair and received the prayer motionlessly, still expressionless. Obviously, this was a request for advice from Shi Wende before.
"The "Eastern Fan Tribute" was clearly expressed as an "unpleasant" statement.
"Go down! We need to keep the affairs of the Japanese in mind at all times. Let the Yi people in Dongfan go home and don't cause any trouble!"
"Yes! Lord Fantai!..."
"Um…"
Shi Wende bowed and saluted, maintained a respectful posture, and walked backward out of the plum garden. Then, under the guidance of the Qin steward, he left the mansion through the back door. Before leaving, he also found a quiet place where no one was.
, took the sleeves with the housekeeper, and handed over another heavy packet.
These formalities for visiting are all necessary. You are not asking others to do something for you, but you are asking others to do something good for you and not to ruin your own affairs. After all, one submission of greetings and one interview are just for management.
Nearly a hundred taels of silver were spent on the whole house. And for a small family of five, the annual expenditure on food and clothing was only about a dozen taels.
Not to mention the Song Dynasty "Huizhou She Inkstone" worth hundreds of taels as a gift to the feudal lord. This is because Wang Zhe has a "clear name", restrains everyone in the mansion, and does not respect luxury, so he only accepted it.
An "elegant cultural relic"...
"Shi Xiaolian, my master has ordered that if there is any important news about the Japanese... take this post and send someone directly to the house to report it."
Before leaving, the housekeeper handed over a "famous post" with a polite smile. The post was all red, which represented nobility. It simply said "Zhejiang Chief Minister, Wang Wenming, May 15th, the seventh year of Hongzhi".
Then he ticked a "mark" that is difficult to imitate. Among them, "civilization" is Wang Zhe's word, and "mark" is the "anti-counterfeiting label" drawn by the chief envoy himself.
But this "ordinary" post is a "talisman" for Shi Wende! As long as this post is there, it means he has an extra life! Even if he and his boat are caught in the coastal patrol
In the water prison of the Inspection Department...if you hand over this post of "Second-grade Chief Envoy", the inspectors in the Inspection Department and the thousands of households in the health office will have to nod and bow down and send the person out properly!
"Yes...yes! The students are very frightened and will definitely try their best to do things for the feudal government!..."
Shi Wende lowered his head again and saluted the housekeeper. The housekeeper returned the salute and then left with a smile. It was only at this moment that Shi Wende, who was standing at the back door of the mansion, took a long breath. He was exhausted.
Holding on to the high white wall, he could hardly stand. But even so, he still clung to the "name card" as if he was clinging to the lives of the Shi family!
Even when he first came of age at the age of sixteen, he went to the Japanese country by boat with his father and ancestors for the first time, and faced hundreds of Japanese warriors... He was not as accustomed to the turmoil as the thirty-year-old, and this time he "visited the feudal lord".
To make him even more nervous, frightened and frightened!
This is the power and coercion of the Ming dynasty. There is no light or shadow, but it is more cruel and bloody than the sword, and it is more cold and ruthless! Just like this red "name card", if it is given to Shi Wende, it can save him from danger.
"The Law of the Ming Dynasty". And if it is handed over to the "Inspection Department", "Wei Suo", and "Yamen", with just one sentence, the three parties can be dispatched at the same time, so that the entire Shi family in Chongming will be stained with blood...
"Hey! Bodhisattva, O Mazu! ... The benefits of sea trade, even though there are thousands of taels of silver and tens of thousands of copper coins, can support hundreds of sword-wielding warriors... But facing this 'post', it is just a paper window.
It will break when you poke it..."
"My father tried every possible means to get me a meritorious career...but only this single-plank bridge of merit can protect my clan and my family! I, the Ming Dynasty, are inferior in everything, but in the end, there is only this one, the right path to upwards!..."
"If I don't have an official position, no matter how much wealth my Shi family saves, what's the use? It just attracts others to spy on me, and ultimately brings disaster! ... And this maritime trade, the layout of Dongfan Island,
Maybe, it really should be cut off... right?..."
Shi Wende remained silent. After a while, he finally regained his composure and looked at Ningbo Port in the dusk. Ningbo Port reflected the red clouds on the sea, and thousands of sailboats raced across the sea. The ten miles were full of prosperity, and Luo Qihua's costumes were countless. But this sea trade belt
The prosperous and prosperous times came, but they never belonged to the maritime merchants who brought prosperity!
This prosperity is beautiful and fragile, just like the colorful shells on the beach. As long as the Jinshi gentlemen step on it, they will be crushed to pieces. But the thousands of Zhejiang people who live on the sea are not even as good as shells, they are just the tide.
