October 29, the 23rd year of Chongzhen.
Footsteps were heard in the Chunhe Hall in Nanjing.
The Crown Prince of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Cilang, paced back and forth in the hall, his face full of...anxiety.
Every once in a while, he would ask his companion eunuch Chen Kuan, "Go and ask if there is any news?"
Chen Kuan ran outside the palace and asked the guard on duty: "Has Mr. Fang entered the palace?"
"Not yet." The soldier answered truthfully.
When Chen Kuan repeated the news to Zhu Cilang, Zhu Cilang became more anxious.
After an unknown amount of time, a eunuch came running outside the door and said, "Your Highness, Mr. Fang has entered the palace."
"Hurry, go outside the palace to welcome him!" The sadness on Zhu Cilang's face disappeared, replaced by joy.
Although Fang Yuegong has resigned from his official position and is now unemployed, his resume is very impressive.
He was a Jinshi in the second year of the Tianqi reign, and successively served as the head of the Ministry of Revenue, the doctor of the Ministry of Revenue, the prefect of Songjiang, the left deputy censor-in-chief, the minister of the Ministry of War, the cabinet minister, the minister of the Ministry of Revenue...
He had served as a local official and also entered the power center of the Ming Dynasty.
And the most important point is that Fang Yuegong must know some inside information that Nanjing doesn’t know.
Outside the gate of the Nanjing Imperial Palace, the carriage that Fang Yuegong was riding in slowly stopped.
After lifting the door curtain and getting out of the car, he saw his former colleague Ni Yuanlu at a glance.
"Fourth brother, how are you?" Ni Yuanlu said as he walked towards him with an old step.
"Brother Ruyu, I hope you are well!" Fang Yuegong responded slowly.
(Fang Yuegong's courtesy name is Sichang, and Ni Yuanlu's courtesy name is Ruyu.)
When they were one step away from each other, Ni Yuanlu stopped and looked at Fang Yuegong.
The two old foxes just stared at each other without saying anything.
The combined age of the two people is nearly one hundred and ten years old.
When people get a little older, they tend to develop towards two extremes.
Either become stupid or become smart, smarter than an old fox.
Obviously, both of them are the latter.
After a moment, they both burst into laughter.
"Hahaha..."
The resentment in Fang Yuegong's heart instantly disappeared in the laughter.
He has been holding a grudge ever since he resigned from office.
He did not make any mistakes when he was the Minister of Revenue, but he was still impeached.
Not only did Chongzhen not protect him, he also dismissed him from his post as Minister of Revenue.
I felt like I was betrayed by Chongzhen.
After returning to his hometown, Yue Gong thought about it for a long time, and based on the development of the court situation, he understood why Chongzhen did this.
The court is short of money. Can Fang Yuegong get it?
Of course!
Not only Fang Yuegong, anyone who holds the position of Minister of Revenue can get money.
But...the same thing.
The deficit of the imperial court was either plundered from the people or from the merchants.
Either method will damage Fang Yuegong's reputation.
Chongzhen did not want this situation.
Coupled with the factor of the Donglin Party, Chongzhen decided to abandon Fang Yuegong and use Xie Sanbin.
Although it is understandable, Fang Yuegong is still a human being after all.
It is inevitable to feel resentment in one's heart.
Today, when he met his old friend Ni Yuanlu, the resentment in his heart finally dissipated.
"Brother Ruyu, let me teach the prince your idea, okay?" Fang Yuegong asked, staring into Ni Yuanlu's eyes.
"It doesn't matter whose idea it was. What matters is that you are here." Ni Yuanlu said with a smile on his face.
"You have caused me so much trouble," Fang Yuegong sighed and whispered in Ni Yuanlu's ear, "I wanted to spend my old age at home, but I didn't expect to come to Nanjing, a place of trouble."
"You must have thought it through, otherwise you wouldn't have come." Ni Yuanlu kept smiling.
"Indeed," Fang Yuegong nodded heavily, "Laozi once said: The wind does not last all morning, and the rain does not last all day. Life is like the tide, ups and downs are all possible. You can neither take yourself too seriously, nor take yourself too lightly."
(The wind does not blow all morning, and the rain does not last all day means that the wind will not blow all day, and the rain will stop sometimes.)
"It's good that you figured it out!" Ni Yuanlu patted Fang Yuegong on the shoulder, pointed at the dilapidated walls and gates of the Nanjing Imperial City and said, "Since you are here, go and pay your respects to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."
"Then I'll have to trouble Brother Ruyu to lead the way."
"please!"
Fang Yuegong followed Ni Yuanlu and walked into this ancient city that had experienced more than two hundred years of vicissitudes.
The two walked slowly and chatted.
"Fourth elder brother," Ni Yuanlu asked nonchalantly, "You said... Prince Ding and Prince Yong have both returned to the capital, so why didn't His Majesty allow the Crown Prince to return?"
"Brother Ruyu asks even though you already know the answer." Fang Yuegong answered calmly.
"That's wrong. You're asking because you don't know." Ni Yuanlu said sincerely, "If you don't tell me now, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince will ask me sooner or later. Some things are not suitable for you to say directly now. It's better for me to relay them."
Ni Yuanlu spoke from the heart.
Fang Yuegong had just arrived and his relationship with the prince was just average.
If he said the wrong thing regarding Chongzhen, it would affect his image in Zhu Cilang's mind.
If the initial impression is not good, it will be difficult to recover later.
"Tell me what you think first," Fang Yuegong looked around and whispered in Ni Yuanlu's ear.
"Simple," Ni Yuanlu also whispered, "There are many useless people in the Nanjing court. Your Majesty cannot do it yourself, so the prince is left in Nanjing. The prince is the heir to the throne, and those people will definitely curry favor with the prince for the future. In the process, they will inevitably make some mistakes, and then the prince can share your worries."
"Too small." Fang Yuegong shook his head.
"What's smaller?"
“The pattern is too small!”
"Hiss..." Ni Yuanlu took a breath, "Is there any other explanation?"
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