As the Spring Festival approaches, the canal is no longer so busy.
The horses of the three thousand cavalrymen from the Beijing camp were all fostered in Nanjing, and they all came to Hangzhou by boat.
It’s not even the New Year yet, and it’s already raining in advance.
When Zhu Houzhao heard that the city of Hangzhou was approaching, he insisted on running out of the cabin for a walk. Zhang Yong and Jiang Bin quickly followed him with umbrellas.
As the boat arrived at Jiangshang Bridge, the river became more open. Dusk fell quietly, and the crabs, fires, and fish lanterns on the river were dotted like stars falling from the sky. It was also raining continuously, and the stars of fishing fires were all reflected in the rain curtain, like a poetic landscape painting.
"Good Hangzhou, the most beautiful scenery in the world is so refreshing!" Zhu Houzhao clapped his hands and praised.
Wang Yuan hugged his son and led his wife, and also came out to see the scenery. He suddenly smiled and said: "Sir, this is one of the eight scenic spots in Hushu, called 'Jiangqiao Muyu'. You are so lucky, you can see this as soon as you come to Hangzhou."
The beautiful scenery is worthy of God’s grace.”
"Hahaha," Zhu Houzhao said with a smile, "I am the emperor, so of course God must give me face. This 'Jiangqiao Muyu' is quite poetic, who named it?"
Wang Yuan said: "It is no longer clear who gave the name, but during the Zhengtong period, there was a priest named Nie Danian in Renhe County. He once wrote a poem in "Linjiang Immortal": A fishing boat swallows the dusk scene, and the river rises to level the bridge at night.
, Jianjia sounded on both sides of the bank. Outside the smoke of the water village, returning woodcutter could be faintly seen. The wild geese wanted to return home and were worried about their wet wings. Who would pity the thousands of miles of clouds, the sky is covered with mountains and the sky is far away. Where is the temple where the bells are ringing? The white birds are missing in the forest waist."
"Good words," Zhu Houzhao praised: "Nie Danian wrote such good words, it would be too unfair to only give edicts. If he were born today, I would at least give him a county magistrate."
Wang Yuan joked: "It's a pity that this person's life is not at the right time."
Zhu Houzhao was in a happy mood, pointing to the houses on both sides of the bank and asked: "Are these all lake villas?"
"It is indeed Hushu," Wang Yuan said. "There are mostly shops on the shore, and there are also many private houses. The closer to Beiguan in Shilihushu, the more shops there are, and there are a lot of people in Beiguan all night long."
"Is that true? Don't people in Hangzhou sleep?" Zhu Houzhao asked.
Wang Yuan explained: "There are too many merchants traveling from south to north, and some of them sail here in the middle of the night. After evening, the merchant ships cannot clear the customs, so they stay and eat and drink in the Hushu area. However, the Chinese New Year is about to come, and the number of merchants coming to Hangzhou has dropped sharply. I'm afraid
Young Master can’t see such lively scenes for the time being.”
Zhu Houzhao smiled and said, "We'll see after the Lantern Festival." The emperor suddenly asked Jiang Bin, "Where will we stay tonight?"
Jiang Bin replied: "There is a manor beside the West Lake. The young master lives there and can enjoy the beautiful scenery of the West Lake at any time."
Zhu Houzhao asked Wang Yuan again: "When Erlang was the governor, did he buy a house in Hangzhou?"
Wang Yuan said truthfully: "I have always lived in the Governor's Mansion, which was a rebuilt ruined temple outside Hangzhou City."
Zhu Houzhao asked in confusion: "Erlang's family is not without wealth, so why are they so frugal and shabby? I know you are not greedy for money and don't like to enjoy yourself, but there is no need to live in a ruined temple. This will damage the majesty of me and the court."
Wang Yuan smiled and said: "The majesty is not in the big house with rich clothes. Although I only live in a ruined temple, the Zhejiang gentry is as well-behaved as quails in front of me."
Zhu Houzhao suddenly became interested: "Let's go and stay in Erlang's dilapidated temple tonight!"
Jiang Bin hesitated to speak, but in the end he remained silent. He knew that he could not persuade the emperor at all. This emperor's thoughts came and went, completely disrupting his follow-up arrangements.
In an instant, we arrived at Beiguan, Hangzhou. It was already dark, so Zhang Yong sent his eunuchs to go ashore in a small boat.
When he flashed his Dongchang badge and said that the emperor was coming, the officials were frightened and Wang Shilu, the head of Beiguan, came to open the gate in person.
"Your Majesty, your Majesty, Wang Shilu!" Wang Shilu shouted while lying on the bank, while the officials behind him knelt on the ground.
Zhu Houzhao waved his hand and said, "Go back, I'll just pass the test."
The chief of Beiguan is appointed once a year, and now he has been replaced. Wang Shilu did not recognize Wang Yuan, but the officials did, and they all bowed to Wang Yuan.
There was still no curfew in Hangzhou City. Wang Yuan led the emperor through the city. After hearing the news, the officials in the city came to see him.
The officials of the Third Division are still the same, but Liang Cai, the prefect of Hangzhou, has been promoted to deputy envoy of the inspection, and the new prefect of Hangzhou is called Liu Zhishu.
When the new official Liu Zhishu took office, the first fire he made was quite big.
After Wang Yuan left Hangzhou, the new Zhejiang garrison eunuch was named Bizhen. This guy was arrogant and violent, and was executed by Liu Zhishu not long ago. The charge was actually "colluding with Prince Ning to rebel."
The prefect of Hangzhou dared to kill the eunuch guarding Zhejiang. This Liu Zhishu was so courageous.
God damn colluded with King Ning to rebel. How could a Zhejiang eunuch collude with Jiangxi to rebel against the king? It was no different from Mo Xuyou.
Moreover, if you kill him, you will kill him. The court has no law to punish the crime, and he has to record his merits with Liu Zhishu!
What's even more amazing is that Liu Zhishu got involved with Chang Lun and Gui E. A prefect and two county magistrates went crazy clearing fields around Hangzhou, driving the local gentry and wealthy households into a state of ecstasy.
Nowadays, Renhe and Qiantang counties have completed the land clearing. And last autumn, a new local tax system was implemented. Official land and private land are taxed uniformly. Land taxes are converted into silver taels according to the equal tax system, and corvee labor is also converted into silver taels. If
When it comes to local project construction, the government pays to hire people to serve on behalf of the people.
The court, the government and the people benefited, while the gentry and wealthy households suffered heavy losses. The three of them joined forces to cause "people's resentment boiling" in Hangzhou.
There is a new nursery rhyme in Hangzhou: Gui is often mad, Liufu is arrogant, and his official power depends on Wang Erlang.
I don’t know who composed the song here, but Gui E, Chang Lun, Liu Zhishu and Wang Yuan were all scolded either explicitly or implicitly.
Wang Yuan has received letters from Gui E and Chang Lun. When he replied, he also wrote a special letter to Liu Zhishu. Although Liu Zhishu did not completely surrender to Wang Yuan, she already had that feeling, and she was among the officials of the Ming Dynasty.
Reformist.
The emperor watched the Hangzhou Night Market all the way, and officials came to pay homage to them from time to time, but they were all sent away by Zhang Yong and Jiang Bin.
Not long after leaving the East City, we arrived at the Governor's Mansion.
The ruined temple is still the same, because Wang Yuan did not step down and still retained the structure of the governor's office. Zhang Cong acted as the governor, Tang Bohu served as the head of the civil servants, and Zhang Muchong served as the head of the civil servants, mainly responsible for supervising the opening of the sea.
"Jiu Ren, Zhang Cong, comes to see His Majesty!"
"Tang Yin, a common man, pays homage to His Majesty!"
"Caomin Zhang Mu, pay homage to Your Majesty!"
When they heard that the emperor's chariot was coming in person, Zhang Cong, Tang Bohu, and Zhang Mu, with their officials, hurried out of the mansion to greet him at the gate.
Zhu Houzhao glanced at Tang Bohu: "Are you Tang Yin?"
"They are just grassroots people." Tang Bohu said.
Zhu Houzhao smiled and said: "Erlang said that you were wronged and asked me to restore your honor. How about I give you a test?"
Tang Bohu secretly glanced at Wang Yuan with gratitude. He thought that the emperor was going to take a test on poetry and classics on the spot, so he knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, please give me the question."
Zhu Houzhao said to Zhang Yong: "Give him those blank folding fans. Within three days, I will see the poems and paintings on the fans. Paint your best erotic pictures, do you hear me?"
"The common people obey the decree." Tang Bohu couldn't laugh or cry.
What he is best at is landscape painting. He paints erotic pictures to make a living. How did he become the best at it?
Moreover, even if his fame is restored, Tang Bohu will become a laughing stock because he made a comeback by painting erotic pictures for the emperor.
Wang Yuan introduced Zhang Cong to the emperor: "Your Majesty, this is Zhang Cong, Zhang Bingyong, a great scholar from Yongjia. He is Wang Sixian's best friend."
Zhu Houzhao smiled and nodded: "Wang Zan is very good. You are his good friend, so you must be very good too. Why didn't you pass the Jinshi examination?"
Zhang Cong could only answer: "Talent and learning are insufficient."
Wang Yuan said: "Zhang Bingyong is full of knowledge and is really a talented person in the country. He failed in many trials because of bad luck."
Zhu Houzhao promised: "If you pass the Jinshi examination, I will give you a rank."
"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Zhang Cong was overjoyed and decided to work hard. The emperor had already spoken. He didn't dare to think about being the top candidate. At least he had to get second place in the exam and get the top prize.
As for the Wang Sixian mentioned by Wang Yuan, his name was Wang Zan, he was born in the second place, and he was from the same hometown as Zhang Cong.
If Wang Yuan hadn't intervened, Wang Zan would have been the left minister of the Ministry of Rites, and he would also be in charge of the seal of the Ministry of Rites. However, because Li Xunxue, the Minister of Rites, was ill and Wang Yuan was absent from the capital for a long time, the seal of the Ministry of Rites was still handed over to the Ministry of Rites.
Wang Zan, the right servant, is in charge. This is called signing the palm seal as the right servant.
By the way, Wang Zan is the emperor's servant and wears the same pants as Wang Qiong.
In history, Zhang Cong had not yet passed the Jinshi examination, but he had already connected with Wang Qiong through his good friend Wang Zan. As a result, he was involved in the political dispute between Wang Qiong and Yang Tinghe, and was thrown to Nanjing to make a living, and was forced to initiate
The Dali Council supported Jiajing, and it was a blessing in disguise that he became the chief minister within a few years.
Zhu Houzhao encouraged Zhang Cong, and after Tang Bohu had some time, he was led into the Governor's Mansion to rest. But it was too shabby here, and Zhu Houzhao was not used to it, so he asked: "Erlang, is there any other place to live nearby?"
Wang Yuan replied: "There is a Jianghuai Guild Hall not far to the east, which is quite magnificent."
"Then go to the Jianghuai Guild Hall to rest." Zhu Houzhao quickly stepped out.
Huang Chongde made a lot of money this time. The guild hall he opened actually received the emperor. He will definitely become the honorary leader of Jianghuai merchants in the future.
As he walked, Zhu Houzhao sighed: "Erlang is so frugal that he actually lived in a place like this for a year. If the people in the court are half as clean as Erlang, I will listen to them obediently."