eldest son of Ming dynasty

Chapter 928 Sudden Change

Chapter 928 Sudden Change

In mid-October of the twenty-first year of the Zhengde reign,

The third prince Zai Yao returned triumphantly and landed at the Ningbo military port.

At that time, the eldest son, Prince Fu, was ordered to supervise the currency reform in Jiangnan, so the emperor ordered him to go to welcome him.

This request is not excessive. Publicly, Zai Yao is going to war for the country, but privately, they are still brothers. If the younger brother takes the risk to go on a long journey and the older brother does not go to greet him, how can they be brothers?

From July to October,

After three months of hard work, the cause of Jiangnan currency reform has made great progress.

In particular, after landing in Sandianxiayao, he went to Ningbo to exchange his old money. It can be said that his attitude was very appropriate.

At least you have to be able to perform well on stage.

The scene of the two brothers being friendly and respectful to each other is also a scene of skill.

Zai Yao actually didn't think much of his elder brother, thinking that his elder brother was mediocre in ability. Although he hadn't been appointed as the crown prince yet, he acted like a big shot in every way and secretly regarded himself as the crown prince. Sometimes he couldn't help but give orders to him, which was annoying.

Zai Yao regarded the second brother as his rival, because he was his playmate since childhood and they were family, so he would hardly doubt him.

But it’s different for the third brother who always pretends to be a good person.

Of course, they still had to show the proper courtesy in front of officials from Zhejiang and Ningbo.

Zai Yao hadn't been back to the inland for more than a year, and when he first arrived he felt that the scenery was completely different.

First of all, there are more merchant ships in Ningbo Port. The docks are crowded with cargo ships of all sizes. As for the city, it is bustling with people, mostly Westerners with deep eyes and high noses doing business here, and even women with plump figures. They would attract the attention of passers-by if they reveal a little milky white hair.

It can be said that men giggle and women are shy.

However, what impressed him most was not the people he saw on the street, but the fact that the new currency mandated by the imperial court could be seen everywhere on the streets of Ningbo.

Zai Yao was in charge of this matter. He boasted about his achievements to his younger brother, saying, "Currency reform is what our father has been most concerned about this year. I, your elder brother, have been ordered to supervise it in Jiangnan. Third brother, look outside and see if most people use the new currency for transactions. In the future, Luzon and other outlying islands will also have to change to the new currency. Otherwise, the court will not recognize it."

"Thank you for your hard work, big brother." Zai Yao lowered the carriage curtain and said with his head slightly lowered, "So, the currency reform is going smoothly in Jiangnan as well?"

Zai Yao said with absolute certainty, "It went smoothly! Is the imperial decree from my father fake? How could it not go smoothly?"

"That's good. By the way, I haven't congratulated you on your promotion to prince yet. I'm thousands of miles away, so I'm late to congratulate you. Please forgive me."

"There's no need for us brothers to be so polite!"

Five days later, they arrived in Hangzhou.

Because of maritime trade, Hangzhou has become a prosperous city with a population of one million. A few years ago, the two capital highways were opened, and later the highways from Hangzhou to Suzhou and Hangzhou to Nanjing were also opened one after another.

The Ming Academy of Sciences has experimented with a new type of paving material. The trial paving between the capital and Datong in the first half of the year was very successful. The road surface is flat and rainproof, and horse-drawn carriages can travel 300 miles a day on it.

No faster, the horse can't handle it.

This kind of road makes it more convenient for people to walk on it by increasing the speed. It is useful, but not too useful.

The key is to pull the goods.

The carriages became bigger and bigger, and could carry more and more cargo.

In Zhu Houzhao's life, the roads were divided into lanes for carriages, but now they are divided into lanes for horses, and the number of horses pulling the carriages must be controlled so that they cannot be occupied by one carriage alone.

This stimulated the development of another thing: to replace animal power with other power.

Of course, that's something else.

For the two brothers Zai Yao and Zai Tuo, it just makes it convenient for them to travel.

Zai Yao had always admired Wang Shouren, the governor of Yingtian, so he had to visit him when he passed by Nanjing.

But when we arrived at a county in Changzhou,

Several people came running over quickly, put their hands on Zai's ears, and wanted to report things to him.

Zai Yao didn't want to be too obvious, so he deliberately scolded, "Your Highness is one of us, why are you talking so mysteriously? Just speak directly!"

"Yes! I know I was wrong."

Then he took two steps back and knelt on one knee. "Your Highness, there is a new development in the case of Nanjing Jinshi Shao Dongru. Dissatisfied with Shao Dongru's unjust killing, several of his friends took the lead and gathered more than 200 people to file a complaint in the capital! Wang Zhongcheng said that he would have his subordinates report to Your Highness quickly. Please go back and discuss it quickly."

Zai Yao lay quietly under the shade of the tree, just drinking tea.

Zai Yao was a little embarrassed. He had been bragging about how great he was all along, but now such a big thing was pinned on his head.

But the third brother was there, and as the eldest brother he had to act nicely, so he suppressed his discomfort, waved his hand and said, "Got it, go down."

There was an awkward silence between the two brothers.

"The third child,"

As soon as he spoke, Zai Yao immediately followed up and interrupted him, "Brother, this matter seems to be urgent, should we hurry on our way?"

"Well, we have to hurry. Let's talk in the car."

Zai Yao knew that the boss would definitely feel uncomfortable if he was around.

Now that he knows everything that happened, isn't he afraid that it will all be exposed after he arrives in the capital?

But we can't just not say it, as if we are deliberately trying to cover up the truth, which will make it more likely for something to go wrong.

Let’s see what he says.

After getting on the bus,

Zai Yao said, "Brother, I am not hiding this from you. There is a reason for this. Two months ago, my father sent me out of the capital to inspect the progress of currency reform in Jiangnan. For this reform, my father made a rule for the overall situation, that is, privately minted coins will not be recognized. This is actually a last resort.

However, the private minting and circulation of coins has been a chronic problem for many years, and many people have these private coins in their hands. To be honest, there are some complaints, but the court has also tried its best, and the people should also understand the court's difficulties.

It is said that Shao Dongru, a Jinshi from Nanjing, was originally the Guanglu Temple Secretary. In the 20th year of Zhengde, his mother passed away and he stayed at home in mourning. As a minister, he should have guided the people, but he not only did not do so, but also stood up for the people who were making trouble. Later, the Jinyiwei arrested him, and when they searched his house, they found that he had written in his letters with others, "The court has never taken advantage of the people before", "The factory guards are like tigers, bloodthirsty, and the emperor has no benevolent demeanor". Such treasonous words.

Zai Yao said: "How could such a bold official be killed unjustly?"

Zai Yao was a little embarrassed, "Because those letters of his were later confirmed to be forged and framed. It turned out that Shaodong Ru was just trying to stand out, but in fact he was just writing petitions for a few people who had grievances, and he did not interfere with the government in private. Moreover, he was very filial to his parents and was a well-known filial son in the village."

"It is indeed an injustice, but how could such a minor offense be punishable by death?"

"To be honest, I don't know anything about your eldest brother. I just feel like everything happened very quickly."

In fact, this is a political atmosphere.

It means using power from top to bottom to force currency reform, using violence to remove all obstructions, and not allowing anyone to express the slightest different opinion.

In this way, the efficiency will definitely be high.

But there will be a price to pay.

Currency reform was originally an economic policy, but now it has been tinged with a certain political movement, causing all actions to become politicized and extreme, which will inevitably lead to a large number of false and wrongful convictions.

So he can certainly show off that the new coin is being widely used.

Damn it, those who are still stubborn enough to use old coins are already queuing up at Naihe Bridge. How can it not be popularized quickly?

Zai Yao was also confused by this repetitive plot.

"Was Shao Dongru really killed unjustly?"

"It should be." Zai Yao sighed.

Then this would be exciting.

So many people gathered together to go to the capital.

If they were really allowed to go to the capital, they would probably reveal countless unjust, false and wrong cases in the currency reform, and in the end they would point the finger at him, the prince in charge, for being rash and causing trouble, or even pointing the finger at the court's currency reform being a wrong policy.

Don't let them go to the capital.

If they tried to keep him there by force, they were afraid that if the matter was reported to the higher authorities, Emperor Zhengde would obviously not be satisfied, and there would be people in the court demanding a thorough investigation of the case.

"Third brother, you have to testify for elder brother," Zai Yao said anxiously, "I am doing this in accordance with the will of the emperor father."

Zai Yao frowned instantly, "Brother, I'm not here to find fault with you. What do you mean by 'all following the emperor's orders'? The emperor ordered you to supervise the currency reform, but he didn't order you to unjustly kill loyal officials and filial sons! You can say this in front of your brothers, but never in front of outsiders, otherwise you will be impeached."

Snapped.

Zai Yao slapped his head and quickly changed his words, "Yes, yes, yes, I was wrong. Third brother reminded me well. It is better to be brothers. I am also anxious. This matter is worrying."

"Since it has already happened, it is useless to worry and lament. Mr. Yangming is a man of great talent and has always been resourceful. Since he has sent a message, let's go back quickly and hear what he has to say."

"Good! Good!"

After that, the two brothers rode at full speed.

Although it is a bit bleak in autumn, the water towns in the south of the Yangtze River are fertile fields everywhere. After years of management, there is actually curling smoke in the countryside, and every place is in order.

But they no longer had the mood to appreciate the scenery, and the endless fields became just a backdrop.

Two days later, they quickly arrived at the Nanjing Governor's Office.

As soon as they arrived, Wang Shouren told them an even crazier news.

He said: "This matter is escalating rapidly. Originally there were more than 200 people, but in just two days it has grown to more than 600 people. It is really a headache."

"More than 600 people?!" Zai Yao screamed, "How could this be possible?"

Seeing such a big commotion, Zai Yao couldn't help but change color, "Who is this Shao Dongru? How could so many people plead for him?"

"Now it seems that it's not all because of him. In the past three months, the Jinyiwei has handled some unjust cases. This person's unjust killing is just a wedge. There are more people who want to take this opportunity to overturn the unjust cases of their friends and relatives!"

Wang Shouren had a keen eye and was observant. He had already realized Zai Yao's question, and the explanation was not difficult to come up with.

Zai Yao knew that he had been involved in the unjust murder of Shao Dongru, so he asked anxiously: "Wang Zhongcheng, what should I do?"

(End of this chapter)