Chapter 357 Zhu Gaojie: Either bow your head or die
The boat the prince rides on is naturally heavily guarded. With the boat as the axis, there are twelve small boats on the left and right wings. The guards on the boats are all the elites of the Twelve Imperial Guards, wearing chainmail and light armor, wearing bamboo hats on their heads and shawls on their shoulders.
The coir raincoat wears a standard forged knife on the waist, and the sleeves are slightly bloated, because there is a mechanical crossbow hidden in the wrist. With just a slight movement of the fingers, the poisonous crossbow arrows can be shot through the air with lightning speed.
out.
The old man in sackcloth, surnamed Kong, held an oil-paper umbrella. Covered by the rain, he pretended to glance casually at the armored guards on the boat. Although the guards were in different locations, they were looking in the same direction. Under the bamboo hat,
His eyes were fierce.
The old man in sackcloth couldn't help but have a subtle feeling in his heart: he was like a lamb surrounded by wolves, going to meet the wolf king.
With his knowledge, he could naturally tell that the guards who were responsible for the defense of the Prince's Huafang were not showy, but real warriors who had stepped out of the mountains of corpses and seas of blood. Their loyalty was only dedicated to the Prince.
The old man in sackcloth stood in the rain, thinking a lot, and thought strangely in his heart: If the prince is an enemy of the emperor and gives orders to the twelve imperial guards, who will these imperial troops listen to?
Before he could think too much, he suddenly saw the escort boats around the boat gradually dispersed, making way for him.
The old man in sackcloth looked up and saw Yu Qian holding the prince's jade plaque at the armrest of the deck of the boat, waving his hand to give orders to the imperial guards.
Just a prince's waist badge can make the twelve guards obey their orders.
The old man in sackcloth already had the answer to his hypothesis in his heart: it seems that even the noble Emperor is slightly inferior to the Crown Prince.
At the very least, if the emperor wants to mobilize the imperial army, it is not enough to rely solely on his waist cards.
The Twelve Guards only recognized the imperial edict and the tiger talisman.
But now it seems that the prince's waist card is more useful than the imperial edict and the tiger charm.
…
The old man in sackcloth had just walked into the painting boat. Before he could clearly see the situation inside, he heard a clang and Yu Qian closed the door from the outside. He was so surprised that the candlelight in the room flickered and almost went out.
His eagle eyes narrowed slightly, and he saw the prince Zhu Gaojie and the young master Yao Guangxiao drinking together behind the desk. The prince was drinking and the young master was drinking tea. The two were chatting happily.
Zhang Muzhi was wearing the flying fish suit given by the emperor and holding an embroidered spring knife in his hand. The powerful eagle and dog ears beside the prince put their hands on the handle of the knife and looked at the old man in sackcloth with a murderous look in his eyes.
Zhu Gaojie raised his hand to indicate that the singers and dancers stopped one after another and left slowly through the back door.
After everyone had left, the prince drank a glass of strong wine and asked in a leisurely manner: "Who is here?"
The old man in linen clothes bowed his hands and said, "The fifty-sixth generation descendant of Confucius inherits the Southern Sect."
Zhu Gaojie glanced at the other party and asked: "Why don't you kneel down when you meet an orphan?"
The old man in sackcloth said leisurely: "Why does the inner saint need to kneel to the outer king?"
Zhu Gaojie chuckled lightly and said: "Thankfully, you are still a descendant of Confucius, and you don't even understand the direction of managing the world that Confucianism has always followed. The so-called inner sage refers to a person's perfect inner scholarly cultivation. The so-called outer king refers to the inner sage.
On the basis of the realization of the inner ideal personality, the saint's kingly ideals are reflected in social life and national politics, and the saint-king ideals of governing the country and bringing peace to the world are realized."
"The Inner Sage is the basis of the Outer King, and the Outer King is the natural result of the Inner Sage. But whether it is the Inner Sage or the Outer King, it is a reference to Confucian knowledge, and there is no other meaning beyond that."
"In your old man's mouth, inner saints refer specifically to the descendants of Yan Shenggong, and outer kings refer specifically to emperors and princes. Such a ridiculous statement, if Confucius heard it, he would be so angry that he would climb out of the coffin and beat you.
."
The eyes of the old man in sackcloth flickered: "I never thought that His Highness the Crown Prince would have such a profound opinion of my Confucian academics. It really surprises me."
Zhu Gaojie said calmly: "Cultivation, Qi, governance, peace, self-cultivation is the foundation, and it is the key to reaching the realm of inner sage. With benevolence and wisdom, everyone is a saint. There has never been anyone in this world who has been born
He is a saint."
Having said this, he paused, pointed at the old man in sackcloth and said with a smile: "Kong Zhu, the ancestor of your Kong family temple, is the 52nd eldest grandson of Confucius and the son of Kong Wanchun, the Holy Duke of Song Yan. The imperial court of the Southern Song Dynasty awarded Kong the head of the family.
Kong Zhu was Duke Yansheng. In the twelfth year of Chunyou in the Southern Song Dynasty, he allocated 360,000 yuan of official money to build a family temple for your Kong family."
"In the twelfth year of Chunyou in the Southern Song Dynasty, there were only twenty years left before the fall of the Southern Song Dynasty. At this time, the Southern Song Dynasty was already in danger, with a continuous deficit in the national treasury, but it still spent 360,000 yuan of official money to build a family temple for your Southern Song Dynasty court. Southern Song Dynasty
The imperial court has been so kind to you Kong, how did your ancestor Kong Zhu repay the imperial court?"
The old man in sackcloth said with a calm expression: "When the Song and Yuan regimes changed, our ancestor Kong Zhu perfectly used Confucian wisdom, calmly dealt with coercion and inducement, abided by loyalty, filial piety and justice, and preserved Confucian culture and inheritance. The allusion to Kong Zhu's granting the title,
It has been praised by people all over the world to this day."
Zhu Gaojie's eyes were gloomy: "Think of your mother, but you will put gold on the faces of your ancestors. You, the Kong family, ate Song Lu and received Song's favor. When the country was in ruins, you Kong family betrayed you without hesitation.
The Southern Song Dynasty surrendered, but what you Confucius surrendered was the Yuan Empire established by Kublai Khan of Mongolia! Acting like this, betraying the monarch and the nation, how is it any different from an animal?"
"If anyone from any dynasty had the experience of being reviled, yet you still confuse right and wrong and regard them as saints. What you originally learned from Confucian culture is all about disloyalty and unrighteousness!"
"Both your body and name will be destroyed, but the flow of rivers will not be destroyed forever!"
After these words, Zhu Gaojie used extremely pungent words to tear off the fig leaf from Confucianism and Confucius, and used the tip of the knife to gouge out Confucius' backbone, which could be described as piercing his heart with every word.
Yu Qian and Zhang Mu were dumbfounded, and the black-clothed prime minister Yao Guangxiao's skinny old hand holding the tea cup was also hanging in the air, his eyes were dull and the corners of his mouth were slightly twitching.
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! This prince's words are really amazing.
The descendants of Confucianism and Confucius, who have been respected by the world for thousands of years, seem to have become shameless and evil-doing insects in Zhu Gaojie's mouth. If this statement is spread, literati all over the world will criticize the old Zhu family, causing an uproar.
However, the old man in sackcloth who was scolded so badly just smiled.
"Well said, very well said."
"It seems that His Highness the Prince not only has amazing achievements and opinions in our Confucian academic field, but also has a considerable understanding of our Confucian history."
The smile of the old man in sackcloth remained unchanged, "Since the prince knows everything, I won't talk too much today. Let's just discuss the matter."
Zhu Gaojie stood up, took out the yellow silk scarf from his sleeves, picked up the white porcelain wine pot that was warming on the stove in the corner, and leaned against the carved window.
He said calmly: "Before you finish drinking this pot of wine, finish your words."
The old man in sackcloth did not waste any nonsense, and said simply and neatly: "Before sunset tomorrow, each of the seventeen families in Yangzhou will send 200,000 shi of grain and grass to the Yangzhou government to contribute their meager contribution to the Northern Expedition of His Majesty and His Highness."
"Two hundred thousand per family is really a small amount of money."
Zhu Gaojie said calmly, "With this little sweetness, you just want to send Gu away?"
"Of course it's more than that."
The old man in sackcloth smiled and said, "Within one month, the aristocratic families in the southern provinces will work together to collect 50 million shi of grain and 50 million taels of silver. Don't worry, Your Highness, we will be responsible for transporting these grains to Beijing, and the transportation will not cost you anything."
The imperial court pays one meter per coin."
Hearing this number, even Yao Guangxiao couldn't help but gasped: "It's really a generous deal."
The logistics standard of the Ming Dynasty army was that a sergeant would have one liter of rice and beans per day, which would give him four buckets of five liters of grain in a month.
Army horses need three liters of concentrate every day. A bunch of licorice is the same as what a sergeant eats, because it is impossible for an army horse to be fed only grass, otherwise the horse will be exhausted after a charge. War horses in the army need to be fed with bean cakes, wheat bran, salt and other feeds.
Feeding. In one month, it will be almost nine buckets of grain and three stones of grass.
Ten thousand troops, war horses and pack horses are calculated as 5,000, and the food for the people is 4,500 shi, and the horses are fed 4,500 shi and 15,000 shi, that is, the monthly consumption of food and grass is 24,000 shi.
In addition, there is also the huge consumption caused by the long transportation of grain and grass. Oxen, carts and carriages all need to be fed with grain and grass. The emperor personally drives the expedition, and the logistics line is thousands of miles away. I am afraid that the consumption during the journey is more than what the sergeants eat.
.
His Majesty the Emperor's northern expedition will require at least 400,000 stones of grain and grass. The Ministry of Industry built tens of thousands of Wugang vehicles specifically for transporting grain and grass.
Even if His Majesty the Emperor takes hundreds of thousands of soldiers to go fishing in the sea for annual vacation, he will not be able to spend all the 50 million taels of food, let alone 50 million taels of silver.
Zhu Gaojie asked with great interest: "You said you asked them to give you food and money, and they just gave it? Are the people in the south just listening to you?"
The old man in sackcloth smiled and nodded: "Yes, I will give it to them as I say."
Use the calmest tone and speak the most arrogant words.
It's as if he is the emperor of the south.
The fact is indeed true. The influence of Kong's Southern Sect in the entire south is not limited to wealth and power. It is more about the golden sign of "Queen of the Most Holy Teachers", which is quite similar to religious belief.
Similar influence.
Among all the officials in the imperial court, how many of them are not from Confucianism in the Imperial Examination? How many of them are from Confucianism in the Imperial Examination who dare to refute the face of the most holy teacher?
Under this monopoly of institutional discourse power that has lasted for thousands of years, the Kong family has long become a towering tree that has never fallen down in the changing feudal dynasties, with roots covering every inch of the soil and absorbing nutrients.
Zhu Gaojie's tone was also very calm: "What do you want?"
It is impossible for the other party to offer such good conditions just to let him let go of the Yangzhou Seventeenth Family. The Yangzhou Seventeenth Family can be regarded as a strong one in Southern Zhili, but looking at the entire south, in the eyes of the Southern Confucius Sect
, what is Yangzhou Seventeen?
With a status like Kong's, it is no longer easy for him to make a move, because once he takes action, the impact will not only be on the surface, but also on the undercurrent. A dynasty will never tolerate this.
The huge thousand-year-old family threatens its rule.
If Kong wants to last for a long time, it is not to show off his power all the time, but to make it transparent and reduce its sense of existence, so that no one notices that under the calm water, there is a lake with the same volume as the lake hidden under it.
Shadow beast.
The fact that the old man in sackcloth could come forward showed that the pressure brought by Zhu Gaojie in the south had already made Kong feel a little breathless.
The emperor's southern tour was to consolidate his power.
Zhu Gaojiu's southern tour was to destroy the foundation of the family.
This is the biggest problem that scares Kong.
Facing Zhu Gaojie's question, the old man in sackcloth said slowly: "I only have one request, and that is -"
"Your Highness will never set foot in the South again in this lifetime."
Boom!
Thunder and lightning suddenly surged outside, illuminating the canal at night like day. After a flash of light, the thunder came like thousands of troops fighting, and like the waves of the vast sea, the waves overlapped one after another, almost shattering the sky.
The patter of light rain was infinitely amplified after the thunder, and it was like a dragon king turning over. The noisy heavy rain was extremely loud in the quiet room.
On the calm canal, the water is rushing endlessly, and the comfortable boat is swinging on the water, maybe it will turn over in the next moment.
The Imperial Guard general who was guarding outside the house couldn't help shouting inside: "Prince, the rain is too heavy. It is too dangerous for the boat to float on the canal. Please let our boat dock quickly!"
Zhu Gaojie responded in a deep voice: "Pass the order to Gu, don't speak out, and don't touch any boat without permission. Also, no one is allowed within a hundred steps!"
"promise!"
The General of the Forbidden Army received the order and took a boat to convey the order to the ships guarding the boat.
"The Crown Prince has an order that no one should be allowed within a hundred steps. Without the Crown Prince's order, no one can touch a boat without permission!"
"Got the order!"
…
…
Inside the ship, Zhu Gaojie's eyes flashed with a cold and cold light: "Can I understand that you are threatening Gu?"
The old man in sackcloth lowered his head slightly: "I don't dare."
During the decades he had been in charge of the Kong family, he had seen Taizu wipe out the world with the four major crimes of Hongwu, and the Fengtian Palace was filled with blood.
We have also seen that when Emperor Jianwen came to the throne, he cut down the vassal vassals. The vassal kings of Jiuzhou were in turmoil and the world was in turmoil.
I have also seen that today, His Majesty uses the power of one place to fight against thirteen provinces. Suddenly, a madman sharpens his sword at night, and the emperor's star flutters high, causing the world to change its master but not Zhu.
But in the eyes of this old man in sackcloth, everything was nothing, just a wave that often occurred in the cycle of the dynasty. No matter how many people died, they could not die on Kong's head. Only the appearance of one person made him
An urgent sense of crisis arises.
——Zhu Gaojie.
From being an unpopular King of Qi, to later conquering the north and south to secure the military power of the Ming Dynasty, the three huge northeastern provinces only listened to his orders. He changed the situation of the dynasty step by step, with countless bones under his feet, and what he brought
The influence has surpassed that of His Majesty today.
If it were just like this, it wouldn't scare Kong.
What really frightens him is that after Zhu Gaojie came to power, he was destroying the foundations of the aristocratic families bit by bit. He changed the administration of officials and the tax system. He used two knives called taxes and officials to invisibly destroy the monopoly of the aristocratic families.
.
But now, this man has revealed his true ambition.
He came to the south and blatantly wanted to knock down the proud head of the family.