Chapter 102: Zhu Yings thoughts (please subscribe and vote monthly)
To access the Jinyiwei Yamen in the inner city, you need to cross the Waiwulong Bridge and Chengtian Gate.
On the right side of the road between Duanmen and Chengtianmen.
This road is also where officials go to and from get off work every day, and further ahead is the Meridian Gate.
After the Meridian Gate is the Inner Wulong Bridge, then the Fengtian Gate, and behind the gate is the Fengtian Hall, commonly known as the Golden Palace.
At the gate of the inner city, Zhu Ying walked here and was stopped.
"Sir, may I ask why you entered the inner city?"
The guards in the inner city saw Zhu Ying walking over.
I originally wanted to reprimand him, but after seeing Zhu Ying's scholarly temperament, my attitude softened.
In these days of Ming Dynasty, looking at faces is a normal thing.
If he had a sallow complexion and thin muscles, he might not be so easy to talk to.
Of course, the main reason that stopped Zhu Ying was because Zhu Ying was wearing linen and blue clothes.
It doesn't look like he has any official position.
"This little brother, I want to go to the Jinyiwei Yamen to find out what the governor Song Zhong has to do."
Zhu Ying was not angry. After all, this was someone else's responsibility. He calmly stated his needs and even reported Song Zhong's name directly.
This can fully support your words and avoid some irrelevant troubles.
When the gatekeepers heard Song Zhong's name, they were really moved.
Jinyiwei Yamen is not a place that everyone can go to.
After a slight hesitation, he made way for Zhu Ying.
After all, Zhu Ying looks like a scholar and is not burly.
The defense of the inner city is not very strict, so there is no need to offend some people.
Such things as mindlessly looking for trouble generally rarely happen.
Zhu Ying bowed slightly as a thank you, and then walked directly to the inner city.
After passing the inner city, especially at three or four o'clock in the afternoon, the road ahead is still relatively deserted.
At this point, officials haven't gotten off work yet. Things like leaving early are impossible in today's Ming Dynasty, especially in the capital. I'm afraid they don't think they live long enough.
Overtime work is not unique to later generations. The officials who can work in the capital now may have a stronger need than the 996 in later generations.
Moving forward, Zhu Ying soon arrived at Waiwulong Bridge.
This is equivalent to the first moat outside the palace. It is not too wide, about six meters, and is made of stone. There is no place to climb, and it is the kind where you cannot get back up if you fall down.
Because it was still dark, officials would pass by here, and occasionally blind officials would fall in.
So you can see that bamboo ladders are prepared at the Chengtian Gate in front to prevent officials from falling and being able to fish them up in time to avoid drowning.
After crossing Wulong Bridge and arriving at Duanmen, the guards here were not so easy to talk to.
The office space behind Duanmen is not accessible to ordinary people.
Those who can work at the entrance of the palace are all important officials in the court.
Ordinary yamen, the places where people can go, are usually on the edge of the inner city and belong to the boundaries of the outer city.
"Excuse me, I would like to inform you that Zhu Ying, the owner of the tea house by the Qinhuai River, has something to do with Song Zhong, the governor of Jinyiwei Yamen." Zhu Ying said.
The guard in charge of the city gate saw a commoner approaching and subconsciously wanted to drive him away.
Among the people coming and going here, there can be no commoners.
Even officials need wooden certificates to enter. Without wooden certificates, officials cannot enter.
Even if you are attending the morning court, no matter if you are a minister of the Sixth Ministry, or a duke or marquis, you are not allowed to enter without a wooden certificate.
What about commoners?
However, the leading guard felt a particularly familiar feeling when he saw Zhu Ying's face.
It seems like, where have I seen it?
This feeling made the guard commander a little unsure. Hearing Zhu Ying's reply, he frowned and said:
"The palace is an important place. No one is allowed to enter without a badge. I also ask the young master to go back. If you want to find someone, you can find someone to help pass the message."
Hearing this, Zhu Ying frowned slightly.
He walked for most of an hour and came back just like that?
This is also because Zhu Ying is not familiar with some of the current systems of the Ming Dynasty, especially the imperial palace system.
This is my first time coming to the Daming Palace.
Earlier, because I had too many things on my mind, I neglected this aspect.
Just when Zhu Ying felt helpless and was about to return, a voice suddenly came from behind: "Master Zhu, why are you here?"
Zhu Ying turned around and saw a guard wearing brocade clothes.
It looked familiar, but I didn't have much of an impression. After recalling it carefully, I remembered that it seemed to be a certain Jin Yiwei when Song Zhong first came to the teahouse.
"I want to talk to Song Zhenfu about something, and I would like to ask this little brother if he can let me know." Zhu Ying said with a bow.
When the guard in Jinyi saw Zhu Ying bowing, he quickly avoided it and said hurriedly: "Master Zhu, wait a moment, I will go in and immediately notify Song Zhenfu to come over."
After saying that, without waiting for Zhu Ying to reply, he showed his waistband and hurriedly went inside.
As soon as I passed Chengtian Gate, I started running.
Realizing that the identity of the visitor might be more important than he thought, the guard commander didn't say much, clasped his fists towards Zhu Ying, and then returned to his post.
Zhu Ying's face was expressionless and she stood there waiting quietly.
He knew in his heart that the appearance of this Jin Yiwei was not a coincidence.
According to the old man's temperament, he arranged for Jin Yiwei to monitor him. This phenomenon is too normal.
Very early on, Zhu Ying knew that she might be under surveillance.
It's just that the scope of this kind of surveillance is very wide, not in his own yard or in the teahouse, so Zhu Ying doesn't pay too much attention.
I thought that after I entered the inner city, the Jin Yiwei had been following me.
Not long after, the sound of rapid movement was heard from the Chengtian Gate. Zhu Ying turned around and looked, and sure enough, Song Zhong came directly in person.
"Master Zhu is here, and we are waiting for the Royal Guards Yamen to shine brightly."
Song Zhong came up and laughed and said very familiarly.
"There are just some things that I need help from Song Zhenfu." Zhu Ying said with a bow.
Seeing this, Song Zhong, just like the Jin Yiwei before, did not care about losing his manners and quickly avoided it.
This is in front of the imperial palace. Although Zhu Ying's identity has not been announced yet, it is not something he, a governor, can afford.
Even if there was a possibility of being discovered, he would not dare.
Zhu Ying was not surprised when he saw this, his eyes were as calm as usual.
"Mr. Zhu, you are so polite. It is Song's blessing to be able to help Mr. Zhu."
After Song Zhong finished speaking, he took out his badge and registered it with the guard commander.
The current responsibilities of the Jinyiwei Yamen are quite special, because they involve the function of protecting His Majesty's safety and the power to arrest people to the Jinyiwei prison, so they are qualified to join the palace.
But it is limited to Chengtianmen.
It is naturally impossible to enter the palace.
To truly enter the palace, there are two checkpoints at the back: Meridian Gate and Fengtian Gate.
Except for the officials who went to court and the guards who were on guard, it would be extremely difficult for anyone else to enter.
Song Zhong led the way, and Zhu Ying followed him in.
After passing Chengtian Gate, there is Qianbu Corridor. Passing all the way, you will soon arrive at Jinyiwei Yamen.
Song Zhong led the way and soon brought Zhu Ying to his office.
He also ordered his subordinates to make tea.
"I don't know if Young Master Zhu is here this time, but if there is anything that needs Song's help, Young Master Zhu may ask, but there will be no ambiguity in whatever Song can help."
After arranging Zhu Ying to take a seat, Song Zhong did not sit down on the main seat. He sat down next to Zhu Ying and started to embrace him.
Zhu Ying said: "I have some things here in the Western Regions, and I want to send them to the capital as soon as possible. The journey is long, so I want to ask for a customs clearance document to facilitate the passage to the inn."
Song Zhong, who had been so generous just now, suddenly became stuck.
The post station thing is not something that his Jinyiwei Yamen can handle.
Post stations were extremely important to the Ming Dynasty, especially in ancient times when communications were backward. Zhu Yuanzhang attached great importance to them and clearly stipulated that the inns could only be used by officials of the imperial court who were on business trips, and no one else could use them.
Around the eighteenth year of Hongwu's reign, there was a prince-in-law who wanted to secretly transport tea and make huge profits, so he thought that he could be regarded as a relative of the emperor and exercise some privileges.
To this end, the prince consort asked his servant to get the certificate from the inn and go to the inn to borrow a carriage.
However, the person in charge of the inn at that time refused to lend the carriage to the Prince Consort's servants. The servants got angry and beat them.
When this incident reached Zhu Yuanzhang's ears, Zhu Yuanzhang was very angry. He felt that the consort had completely ignored his own laws and would have the consort and his servants executed even if his daughter became a widow.
At that time, this incident caused great excitement among the government and the public. From then on, no one dared to touch the post station in the slightest.
Seeing Song Zhong's troubled look, Zhu Ying frowned slightly.
Regarding the understanding of the inn, Zhu Ying obviously did not feel as deeply as Song Zhong did.
Song Zhong also noticed Zhu Ying's displeasure. He gritted his silver teeth, stood up and said, "Please wait a moment, Mr. Zhu. I will go and help Mr. Zhu take care of this matter."
Zhu Ying frowned, knowing that this matter might be troublesome. He stood up and bowed, "Then I'll trouble Song Zhenfu."
"Don't dare, don't dare. Mr. Zhu will rest here for a while and come back as soon as you go. If you have any orders, just take charge of arranging the arrangements for your subordinates."
Song Zhong waved his hands repeatedly, "Master Zhu is good at everything, but he is too polite and bows at every turn, which makes him feel overwhelmed."
After saying that, he hurried out.
Zhu Ying was speechless, picked up the tea, and waited with peace of mind.
After Song Zhong went out, he immediately gave instructions to his subordinates who were waiting outside.
"Whatever Mr. Zhu needs, we must do it. If it can't be done, we have to find a way to do it. Do you understand?"
"My subordinate understands."
Waiting outside the door was the Jin Yiwei who had helped Zhu Yingtong pass the news to Song Zhong before.
He often protects Zhu Ying and has some understanding of Zhu Ying's situation.
After Song Zhong finished his instructions, he quickly walked towards Ouchi without any hesitation.
He wanted to convey this matter to Commander Jiang Gudu immediately.
Daming Palace, Huagai Hall.
Zhu Yuanzhang was discussing the effects of working-for-relief with several ministers of the six bureaucracies and several real academicians.
"Your Majesty, at present, the work-for-relief strategy is very good. The nobles and nobles are willing to provide food as a guarantee in exchange for the opportunity to undertake the project."
"Many victims survived this famine. I believe that it can be implemented on a large scale."
Shen Ming, Minister of the Ministry of Industry, said.
The Ministry of Works is mainly responsible for providing relief through work, and Shen Shu knows the current situation best.
After hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang nodded and said to everyone: "Let's all discuss and see if there are any other places where we can check and fill in the gaps."
As soon as the words fell, everyone present began to whisper and discuss.
At this time, outside the Huagai Hall, a guard in Jinyi came over quickly and reported in a low voice to Jiang Wei who was guarding the door.
After Jiang Wei listened, he pushed the door open and entered regardless of the political dignitaries being discussed inside.
"Your Majesty, I have something important to report."
Zhu Yuanzhang frowned slightly and said, "Say."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Wei said: "This matter is very important. Please allow me to speak in detail."
Zhu Yuanzhang nodded and said: "That's right."
Jiang Wei walked to Zhu Yuanzhang's side in small steps and whispered: "Your Majesty, His Royal Highness Changsun is at the Jinyiwei Yamen now. He wants to ask for a pass document for the inn, saying that he wants to bring something from the Western Regions."
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ps: Normally there are three to four updates per day, two updates are guaranteed, one or two updates are updated, both of which are 3k chapters.
The first update is around 12 noon, the second update is around 5 pm, and the third update is around 11 pm.
There were some special circumstances today, so it was slightly postponed.