Chapter 18: Snow on the Lakeside Pavilion (Part 2)
"This is the capital..." Zhu Changzhou looked around and couldn't help but sigh, "I've seen brocade woven on looms in Nanzhili before, and I thought it was luxurious, but the people in the capital look even richer than those in Nanzhili..."
Seeing that his sister was interested in everything, Zhu Changtian said with a smile, "I heard there are many markets in the west. How about we just clean up our new home and then go to the West Market for a stroll?"
Zhu Changzhou nodded like a chick pecking at rice, but couldn't help revealing a bit of worry, and said: "I don't know how mother is doing..."
Zhu Changtian just sighed in his heart, but said soothingly: "Don't worry, our Ming army is strong and powerful. Mother has people protecting her in the army, so nothing will happen to her."
Having said that, Zhu Changtian knew very well that the court's textile factories were unable to pay their workers, and the army was probably not much better.
Officials occupying civilian land and military officers occupying military farms are nothing more than a race between two turtles. For ordinary soldiers, loyalty to the emperor and patriotism cannot be used to make a living. It is already good enough that they did not join the rebellion, let alone do their best to quell the rebellion for the court.
Zhu Changzhou was still young, and well-protected by his mother and brother, so he thought things through very simply. He cheered and said, "Then...Brother, let's go quickly!"
"good."
Although Zhu Yijingren did not come to the capital, he had already asked someone to rent a mansion, and paid two fellow merchants from his hometown to escort the brother and sister to the capital with the escort company. In addition, Zhu Changtian also followed him and did things for a year, so everything went smoothly along the way. After arriving in the capital and arriving at the mansion, the brother and sister, together with their wet nurse Song Mama, cleaned the house tidy and arranged the few belongings they brought back from Jiangxi. Only then did they have time to go out for a walk.
The capital city was densely populated, and while the market was similar in size to Nanchang Prefecture, it had several times as many people. The three of them went to the market, not only to see the novelty but also to buy some necessities for their family, so that they could study and live in the capital.
Now that Zhu Yijing has been promoted, her colleagues who were not very familiar with her have reconnected with her. They are taking good care of the brother and sister, and some even take the initiative to help them arrange school places.
For example, Zhao Yucheng, a contemporary of Zhu Yijing and now a cabinet minister, did not rank as high as Zhu Yijing in the palace examination in the 11th year of Deshi, and his official career was not very smooth. However, his hometown happened to be in Jiangxi, and Zhu Yijing had taken good care of the family of this fellow examinee over the years. Therefore, after the emperor came to power, Zhao Yucheng recommended Zhu Yijing, which led to the emperor's order to transfer Zhu Yijing back to Beijing.
After the Zhu brothers and sisters cleaned up the house, Zhao Yucheng took the initiative to invite the two younger generations to visit his home to welcome them.
Zhu Changtian learned a lot about the ways of the world during his year in the government office. He knew that Zhao Yucheng was trying to win over his mother, so he took good care of the two siblings. Considering his mother's personality, Zhu Changtian always tried to refuse whenever possible to avoid causing trouble for his mother.
Matters in the imperial court have always been troublesome and cannot be explained by simply promoting each other at the same time. It is better to avoid suspicion as much as possible.
Especially since his mother was not at home at the time, Zhu Changtian was afraid that because of his and his sister's actions, his mother would invisibly "take sides" in the court and be involved in the factional struggles among the ministers.
Zhu Changtian discussed it with his sister, and the brother and sister made their own decision. They declined the school that Zhao Yucheng found for them and started studying at the basic school first in order to adapt to the teaching methods of the school in the capital.
In this way, they can return the gifts according to normal exchanges later and there is no need to worry that their mother will owe too much because of the two of them.
It was precisely because Zhu Yijing was away that the brother and sister were able to study according to their own wishes without being bound by the Jinshi exam.
Zhu Yijing could not enter the capital for a while, and by the time she came back, the matter was already done, and naturally there was no way to change the decision of the brother and sister.
Compared with the tranquility of the capital, the situation in Shaanxi is not so optimistic.
Although Zhu Yijing had experience in suppressing rebellions, after actually seeing the situation in Shaanxi, Zhu Yijing couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart.
The Agricultural Affairs Department of the Academy of Sciences was established over a hundred years ago, and has achieved many results in cultivating various seeds and seedlings. Emperors of all dynasties have also issued decrees to promote various grains. Logically speaking, even though there have been frequent natural disasters in recent years, Shaanxi should have accumulated grain purchased from the people, not to mention that the court also allocated additional grain and silver for disaster relief.
However, most of the grain in the warehouse had rotted and the quantity was obviously inconsistent. Zhu Yijing made some simple inquiries and learned that the farmland that should have belonged to the people had long been occupied and divided. Although it still belonged to the people in name, the actual use of the arable land had long been monopolized by local officials and businessmen. It was no wonder that many farmers and workers rebelled against the government.
"Zi Qing, Zi Qing?"
Zhu Yijing withdrew his gaze from the maid beside him and said, "Thank you for entertaining me, Prefect."
The prefect said with a chuckle, "You are now the governor of Shaanxi, appointed by His Majesty, and concurrently the left vice minister of the Ministry of Rites. You are also from the royal family, and you will soon be very successful. Why are you being so polite? We will have to rely on you in the future!" He followed Zhu Yijing's gaze and looked at the maid who was pouring wine. "If you like, let her go back with you."
Zhu Yijing's tone was a bit more restrained. "I just saw that she was about the same age as my daughter. The prefect's family was wealthy, and the maids were dressed so gorgeously and elegantly."
The prefect was not angry after hearing this, but simply said, "This is how the world is these days. Maids are the face of a family. I heard that the maids of merchants in Gansu wear Liaodong pearl cheeks every day. This is what they call spending money like water."
These words had a certain warning tone, obviously suggesting that Zhu Yijing should not embarrass himself, as there were many people who were more extravagant than him.
Zhu Yijing understood this very well, but the more he understood, the angrier he became.
If this spare money had been used for disaster relief and aid to the people, would the uprising in Shaanxi have developed to the point where the court had to send people to suppress it?
"This uprising isn't just a Shaanxi issue. As a former censor who toured Jiangxi, you should be well aware of this." The prefect took a sip of his wine, paused, and continued, "Your Majesty has just taken power, and it's time to make the first three major moves. No one wants to be the one being killed to scare the monkeys... I've already communicated with the local merchants and officials, and we'll find a way to suppress the workers who can. As for the farmers..."
Zhu Yijing just stared at the slight ripples in the cup and said, "How is it?"
"Leave it to the imperial army. With the rebels reduced by one-third in number, they'll be easier to deal with. We should also allow the troops who have come all this way to accomplish something, so their journey isn't in vain." The prefect patted the table and said with a soothing smile, "Don't worry. Those rebels' ancestors were just farmers. They won't amount to anything! Otherwise, I wouldn't have the leisure to invite Minister Zhu to a banquet at my mansion."
Such a well-thought-out plan naturally cannot be realized without a sharp mind and sufficient connections.
If the prefect had been able to use these within his jurisdiction, Zhu Yijing would not have to come to supervise the army now.
Zhu Yijing couldn't help but sigh inwardly, "If I had known this would happen, why would I have done it in the first place?"
Her sudden emotion left the prefect a little confused.
But before he could open his mouth to ask, the servant of the family ran in and saw that his silk clothes were in tatters and looked like they had been torn by someone.
The prefect was shocked. Seeing that he was out of breath and unable to speak, he hurriedly asked, "What's going on?"
"Master, it's bad, the workers from the winery are rushing in!"
"They rushed in?" The prefect was horrified and angrily asked, "How did you do things? How did you let them rush in?"
"Master, there are too many people..."
The prefect immediately ordered his men to go find the patrol officers. Zhu Yijing, who was standing by, had already said, "Stop."
The prefect saw her trying to stop him, and with a look of displeasure on his face, he said, "Censor Zhu, what are you doing?"
Zhu Yijing stood up, glanced at him coldly, and said, "What for? Of course, it's to punish those who deserve it."
Upon hearing this, the prefect immediately felt ominous and asked, "What do you mean by deserved punishment? Censor Zhu, please don't talk nonsense..."
Zhu Yijing pulled out the imperial edict from his sleeve and said, "Your Majesty has ordered me to come to Shaanxi to investigate the situation. I should act according to your discretion. A scoundrel like you should be executed on the spot, but this is too easy for you. Naturally, those whose families have been destroyed by your abuse of power should be executed on the spot to appease the public anger!"
The prefect immediately stood up, grabbed the servant beside him and tried to escape, but Zhu Yijing grabbed him and said, "I'm afraid you may not live long enough to enjoy this wealth and glory."
"You...you...how can this dynasty treat officials so lightly? I...I want to report you!"
"If you are still alive, you can go and participate!"
As they were talking, the angry workers rushed in, each of them covered in blood, which showed how "tragic" the battle ahead was.
Seeing the luxurious banquet and the relaxed and comfortable prefect, everyone became even more furious. They grabbed the prefect and beat him up. For a while, all they could hear were curses and wailing, which was horrifying.
Zhu Yijing had already dodged away when the workers rushed over. From a distance, she saw the crowd beating the prefect from outside the courtyard gate. Then, she instructed her attendants, "Call the patrol officers to arrest the workers who led the riot and bring them to jail for a thorough interrogation. They might be connected to the rebels or even have ties to officials within the government. This way, we can kill two birds with one stone."
The follower was stunned when he heard this and looked at Zhu Yijing in a daze.
Zhu Yijing also played a significant role in the fact that these workers were able to come forward on their own initiative today and the event was on such a large scale. However, all of this was done in secret and was not known to the workers.
And now, Zhu Yijing obviously intends to take this opportunity to catch all these workers in one fell swoop and leave no future trouble.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
