The court meeting of the Qing Dynasty was held on time, the sky was still bright, the palace was still cold, the emperor was still sitting on the dragon chair, and the ministers were still humbly and directly discussing the government affairs of various counties and roads. After all the matters that urgently needed to be discussed were over, the emperor with a slightly tired face said, "What else is there?"
A minister of Dali Temple came out and carefully reported the report: "Your Majesty, the Department of Neiku Transshipment is making Mr. Xiao Fan... how to deal with it?"
What many officials in the capital did not expect was that the deficit of the household investigation department, which had been simmering for several days, had not yet begun, but the accusations against Fan Xian, who was far away in the south of the Yangtze River, had already come violently.
Within three days, memorials from the Jiangnan Yushi and some officials flew to the Imperial Palace like snowflakes, pointing directly at Fan Xian, the envoy of the Internal Treasury Transit Department, arrogant and unrestrained, relying on his status as an imperial envoy , suppressed colleagues, disregarded national laws and regulations, and arbitrarily killed four treasurers of the internal treasury, which aroused public anger and triggered a strike by the workers of the three major workshops.
The three major workshops of the inner treasury are the important pillars of the Qing Kingdom's finances, and such a major event as the labor movement has not happened for many years, so the news spread back to the capital and shocked many people. The capital is far away from Jiangnan, and people don't know the real situation in the northern Fujian transshipment yamen, and they don't know that it's Yushi Guozheng and those officials from the eldest princess's faction who are confusing right and wrong. But when these officials accused him passionately, it turned out that Fan Xian killed first without reason and aroused public anger later.
In the hearts of the courtiers, Master Xiao Fan is indeed a character who can do such a crime.
So Lao Fan hadn't been investigated yet, the courtiers began to have deep opinions on Xiao Fan, they discussed the matter at the court meeting for several days, but they never came up with an idea, and His Majesty didn't let go.
Among civil servants, there are always a few people who are not scum. They are not wary of the fact that Fan Xian is the emperor's illegitimate son. On the contrary, because of this incident, they cast more distrustful eyes on Fan Xian, because they are worried that such a A powerful minister would harm the foundation of the Qing court and the interests of the people.
For example, Hu Dashi, who has already entered the school and started to walk in the cabinet, has no contact with Fan Xian, and his understanding of Fan Xian is limited to official and folk rumors. Xian's talent and knowledge are greatly appreciated by others, but he... still believes in what the memorial says.
Hu Dashi served as a local official in various counties for many years, and he knew very well that Beijing officials are difficult to deal with. He was very afraid that Fan Xian would rely on his family background, and once he left Beijing, there would be no one to check and balance, and he would run amok in the south of the Yangtze River.
He decided to speak up for the officials in Jiangnan, on the one hand, to avoid too much damage to the local area, and on the other hand, he was afraid that Mr. Fan, whom he admired in his heart, would go astray.
Seeing Hu Dashi standing out, he said calmly: "Your Majesty, this matter should be thoroughly investigated."
The emperor rubbed his temples, and asked, "A thorough investigation? Fan Xian has already written a report to let me know about this matter. The Overwatch Council also has a court report. There should be a file in the Zhongshu under the door. You should be clear about the matter. The disturbance in the internal treasury was caused by Fan Xian's investigation of the long-standing abuses and seeking justice for the workers."
Hu Dashi said in a clear voice: "Your Majesty, this is just one side of Master Xiaofan's words. Since so many officials have reported to him, they must send someone to Jiangnan to ask. If what is said in the memorial is true, it is natural to conduct a thorough investigation. Make up for it, so as not to hurt the hearts of tens of thousands of workers in the internal treasury. If what the memorial says is wrong, you should severely reprimand the Jiangnan Road officials, so that you can comfort Mr. Fan and give Mr. Fan some justice."
The emperor glanced at him with a half-smile, thinking that the Grand Scholar insisted on sending people to Jiangnan after all the talk, but the capital is so far away from Jiangnan, even if he sent someone from Beijing, wouldn't it be Fan Xian? Are you still afraid that he will fail? However, the reason why the exiled Hu Dashi has been transferred back to Beijing this year is that the Emperor Qing wants to use the stubbornness and integrity of Hu Dashi.
Just like using Lin Ruofu and Chen Pingping to fight in the ring many years ago, Emperor Qing planned to let this Hu Dashi and Fan Xian fight in the ring. Since this is the case, he will naturally not speak out at this time to refute the Dashi's face, and said with a smile: "University The scholar’s words are justified, and I would choose to go to the south of the Yangtze River to take a look, and I always have to see it with my own eyes before I know.”
What Master Hu wanted was only this seemingly fair opinion on how to deal with it, and since his goal was achieved, he withdrew it.
At this time, Grand Master Shu Wushu couldn't help worrying and said: "Who is right and wrong can always be found out. I am just worried that after the internal treasury has experienced this turmoil, there will be no problems with the entry this year. After all, Master Xiao Fan is in charge of the internal treasury for the first year, please Your Majesty please mention him more."
This was a very mild opinion, but it also represented the concerns of many courtiers, who were worried that Fan Xian would be too ruthless and cause major problems in the production of the entire inner treasury. But Shu Wu's gentleness does not mean that other people are gentle. On the contrary, several ministers began to express their deep worries and loyalty to the imperial court based on the words of Master Shu University, saying that Mr. Fan is young after all, The internal treasury has a lot to do. If the internal treasury has fallen too much this year compared to previous years, should the court think about choosing another candidate
This is a blatant distrust of Fan Xian, and the meaning is obvious. If you, Fan Xian, can't increase the profit level of the internal treasury, even worse than in previous years, then what qualifications do you have to be in charge of the internal treasury
Just because they were blatant, every word and every word seemed to be for the imperial court, so although the courtiers knew well that these ministers wanted to remove the god from the inner treasury, it was inconvenient to refute it.
The emperor smiled slightly and said, "We won't know until next year what the quality of the Neiku is this year, and all the ministers are too impatient. Whether or not Fan Xian will live up to my expectations will not be known until some time later."
The emperor seemed to suddenly think of something, and said: "However, the internal treasury's bidding has ended a few days ago, and the bidding documents should have been escorted back to the capital. All the ministers want to see Fan Xian's ability and the results of this opening bid. Should be able to know a thing or two."
The country of Qing has a vast border, and the capitals of Jiangnan and Nanjing are far apart. The bids will be opened in Suzhou on March 22, but the news will be sent back to the capital. Originally, if he had taken the secret postal route and the academy newspaper, it would have been a few days sooner, but Fan Xian didn't know whether he forgot, or it was the issue of keeping the tender document confidential. After the labor unrest in the factory, the Overwatch Council began to consciously block the flow of news between the two places, so that even though the current capital of Kyoto vaguely knew about the uproarious bidding incident in Suzhou at that time, it did not know the specific situation.
The news that was supposed to go the fastest, but under Fan Xian's suppression, it went slower than that Master Sanshi.
The emperor quietly looked at one person in the queue below, and said, "Did Taichang Temple receive the document?"
All the income of the three major squares of the inner treasury are reviewed and managed by the Taichang Temple and the inner court, so the emperor asked the Zhengqing of the Taichang Temple.
"It's just arrived in the morning." Taichang Temple Zhengqing coughed twice, and said with a sad face: "I am in a hurry to enter the palace, so I haven't seen it yet."
The emperor snorted coldly: "Then hurry up and get it!"
Zhengqing of Taichang Temple saluted, then trotted out of the palace.
"Big fellows, just wait." The emperor announced the postponement of the court meeting with a half-smile, and slowly sipped a bowl of tea from eunuch Yao beside him.
As time passed by, the officials in the palace waited a little anxiously, but they didn't dare to show any expressions, and they were really curious, how did things go when Fan Xian went to Jiangnan? The 40% fixed silver collected by the internal treasury for the opening of the bids in the Spring Festival every year is the largest income received by the Qing court every year, and these officials can't help but look forward to it excitedly and wait nervously.
The emperor looked at these courtiers coldly, feeling a little unhappy in his heart. He understood why all the civil servants had to stand up and express their opinions on Fan Xian. His illegitimate son, the officials have long complained about the imperial court's reuse of Fan Xian. They always feel that this matter is inappropriate, and it's all because His Majesty loves his own flesh and blood, so he uses his official position to comfort him.
But this internal treasury belongs to me, the world belongs to me, and this son also belongs to me... The emperor thought coldly, when will it be your turn to talk nonsense? But the emperor also knew in his heart that if Fan Xian really failed to live up to his expectations and made a mess of Jiangnan, the internal treasury became ruined, and the country's important place was destroyed, and he responded to the concerns of the officials, no matter how he tried to protect his shortcomings, he had no choice but to make him Call back.
However, the emperor has confidence in Fan Xian, and this confidence has been cultivated gradually. Ever since Fan Xian came to Beijing from Danzhou, the Ninth Five-Year Supreme has been carefully and meticulously watching Fan Xian's every move, wanting to see himself What kind of abilities will the child born with her show.
Among all the things, Fan Xian's performance did not disappoint him. Wen has the three hundred poems in front of the palace, Wu has the name of Jiupin, and is famous for the book given by Zhuang Mohan. He has good ability to grab money, but he is not greedy. The despicable attitude, even the romantic energy, is not something that ordinary young handsome people can do. As for the grasp of the court situation, it is not like a young man who is only eighteen years old, loyal to the king, and loyal to his father. The filial piety is actually a flaunt.
In the final analysis, the emperor was still a normal middle-aged man, and he would inevitably feel somewhat proud of Fan Xian, an illegitimate son, after all... this was his seed.
So when the courtiers began to doubt Fan Xian, he asked Taichang Temple to immediately report the details of the opening of the inner treasury. Although he didn't know the exact amount, the emperor never doubted Fan Xian's ability to scrape land.
Scraping land is the most basic skill of being an official.
There was a sound of hurried footsteps outside the hall, and Zhengqing of Taichang Temple trotted in, his face flushed, and he kept wiping the sweat from his forehead. Ren Shaoan, the Shaoqing of Taichang Temple who was following behind him, was also panting exhaustedly. Running all the way from Taichang Temple to Taiji Hall was indeed a bit exhausting.
After a simple salute, the emperor asked the two to stand up, leaned forward, and asked with a hint of interest, "How is it?"
All the court elders in the hall also looked nervously at the two officials of Taichang Temple.
Zhengqing of Taichang Temple swallowed his saliva with a grunt, before he had time to say anything, his face was already happy, and he said loudly: "Congratulations, Your Majesty!"
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As soon as this remark came out, everyone knew that the opening of the internal treasury's new year bid opening in the sixth year of Qingli was promising, and it was a great success, not a minor one.
The officials who were faintly intending to defend Fan Xian were relieved, with smiles on their faces, and Madam Shu nodded in relief. But most of the rest of the officials were slightly taken aback. No one seemed to have thought that Fan Xian, who was in charge of the internal treasury for the first time, would be able to achieve good results after the secret constraints of the eldest princess' forces and the internal treasury's unrest.
Only that Hu Dashi's face was calm and there was no abnormality.
Emperor Qing, who was sitting on the dragon chair, felt relieved after hearing these four words. Although his expression remained calm, he sat back in the chair with his entire buttocks, feeling extremely secure—although he was very calm to Fan Xian. Confident, but always a little nervous before getting real rewards.
The emperor smiled and said, "What is the specific number?"
Everyone needs money, and the emperor is no exception. He has all the money in the world, and he hopes that the total amount of silver money in the world will be as large as possible. He is the biggest rich man in the world, but at this moment, like all rich men, there is a hint of joy flashing in his eyes.
Shaoqing Ren Shaoan coughed twice, took out a dossier and read it aloud: "On March 22, the sixth year of Qingli, the Neiku Transshipment Department opened its doors to invite bids. There are 16 bids for the rights of the North, South, and East Third Roads. The total number of audits is..."
When he said this, he seemed to be taken aback by the huge number again, he sank his mind slightly, and said:
"Twenty-four million two hundred and twenty thousand taels... exactly...!"
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As soon as this fluttering word was uttered, the entire Taiji Hall became silent, and no one was able to speak for a long time.
Two thousand four hundred and twenty-two thousand taels? so much? This is 80% more than last year! Fan Xian... how did he do it? Could it be that he will deceive people's hearts and turn those imperial merchants in the south of the Yangtze River into big fools
The ministers were dumbfounded and looked at each other in blank dismay. They were a little breathless under the pressure of this huge number, and everyone's spirit fell into a kind of confusion.
Gudong sound!
Master Shu's face was flushed, and he fell to the floor, causing a commotion among the officials, and it took him a long time to help him up. I saw the great scholar's expression was extremely excited, and he slurred his words to His Majesty on the dragon chair: "Congratulations, Your Majesty, congratulations, Your Majesty!"
It was only at this time that the ministers came to their senses, and after a coaxing exclamation, they turned around and saluted the emperor farewell, the flattery was like a tide, the flattery was like a sea, the grace was like a mountain, God bless Daqing, Your Majesty is wise, and so on.
Twenty-four million taels of silver, even if they can only earn 40% of the account now, there are still nearly ten million taels of silver! Such a large amount of income can be used to do too many things, such as building rivers, strengthening the military, helping people's livelihood, such as... increasing salary? No matter what faction these ministers belonged to, they were all ministers of the Qing Dynasty, the most powerful country in the world. They all began to rejoice when they thought that the imperial court had such a large sum of money to solve the urgent need of emptying the national treasury.
This kind of rejoicing is not hypocrisy, but genuine joy. Whether the ministers are greedy or not, wise or stupid, they always hope that the court will be better.
And while these people were desperately flattering the emperor, they would inevitably think of the one whom they suspected and opposed... Mr. Fan.
The opening of the internal treasury bid was so smooth and brought such great benefits to the imperial court. Fan Xian, who supervised the battle from far away in the south of the Yangtze River, naturally deserved the first credit, but how to turn this corner? So some ministers rolled their eyes wildly, refusing to mention Jiangnan's affairs.
At this time, it was the Hu Dashi who was the first to stand up.
As soon as he stood up, the lively and joyful hall suddenly became a little quiet, and everyone wanted to know what this Master Hu wanted to say.
Master Hu calmed down, and said: "It's really unbelievable that this number is so large. I don't hope that Mr. Fan used some other means. The so-called fishing in the dry lake has squeezed out the imperial merchants in the south of the Yangtze River this year. If the production cannot keep up, what will happen next year?"
In the midst of peace, a dissonant note suddenly appeared, which really made people feel uncomfortable. The officials were uproarious, even those who disliked Fan Xian, couldn't stand it, and spoke up for him. The Neiku Transshipment Department spoke, thinking that Hu Dashi's remarks were inappropriate.
The emperor also broke away from the previous excitement, looked at Xueshi Hu coldly and said, "In your opinion, Fan Xian is not rewarded but punished for having obtained so much money for the court?"
Master Hu shook his head, and said decisively: "The minister's words are just a trace of doubt. After all, the minister is not in the south of the Yangtze River and does not know the specific situation. He is just doing his duty to remind His Majesty. Problems, of course, should not be punished a little, but should be greatly rewarded."
The emperor calmed down and asked quietly: "According to what Hu Qing saw, how should I reward him?"
"Although it is a matter of silver, it is the foundation of the country." Hu Dashi said calmly: "Master Fan has made such a fundamental contribution, so he should be rewarded forever."
The emperor narrowed his eyes slightly, and said, "What is the reward of immortality?"
"After thoroughly investigating the opening of bids in northern Fujian and Suzhou," Hu Dashi raised his head and said gently, "I would like to be a recommender. Please call for Master Xiao Fan to write a letter to the cabinet to discuss matters."
As soon as this remark came out, the court was shaken and the officials were shocked. What is the role of Zhongshu Sheng under the door? That was the center of the imperial court. After Prime Minister Lin resigned, the Qing Kingdom no longer had the post of prime minister, and the senior scholars under his sect were in charge of the functions of the prime minister. With the return of the Great Scholars to Beijing, the position of the Zhongshu Provincial Cabinet has been confirmed—if you can enter the Zhongshu, it means you have entered the highest decision-making authority of the imperial court. Does Hu Dashi want to recommend Fan Xian to the cabinet
The ministers wondered where this Hu Dashi was from? Why do you talk like crows at one time, but at the same time give Fan Xian so much power and such a high status? Yan Xingshu, Shangshu of the Ministry of Punishments, stared at Hu Dashi with a hint of jealousy and confusion.
Unexpectedly, the emperor listened to this discussion, but without thinking about it, he said directly: "No. Fan Xian is too young."
The ministers were Wei An, thinking that His Majesty's opinion should be Zhong Yun, otherwise it would be too absurd to let a young man in his twenties enter the Zhongshu to discuss matters.
Master Hu said calmly: "In ancient times, there were sixteen sages who were prime ministers. What's more, Zhongshu under the door is an institution for your Majesty's clerks, not a real prime minister. And Mr. Fan is talented, talented, multi-functional, Such a talent should be above the court to help His Majesty solve problems."
The emperor glanced at him with a half-smile, but still simply shook his head: "He is the commissioner of the Overwatch Council. According to Qing Law, officials of the Overwatch Council are not allowed to concurrently serve as court officials. idle job."
Hu Dashi answered very quickly: "The celebration of the law is not as good as His Majesty's will. The young age is not a problem, and the role of the Overwatch Council is not a problem. If this is not the case, how dare I say that it is an eternal reward?"
The emperor raised his lips and smiled, waved his hand and said: "There is no need to discuss this matter again, I... will not allow it."
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The emperor said that the four horses were hard to chase, so Master Hu had no choice but to retreat, but there was no other expression on his face.
The emperor squinted his eyes and looked down, and found that Master Hu and Shu Wu met each other's eyes. He knew that this old fellow Shu Wu had received the news beforehand, and he immediately guessed why Master Hu would take the opportunity to make such absurd suggestion today. .
"Talent... Anzhi is indeed a talent."
Just because Fan Xian's abilities were too amazing, the civil service system would always be wary of Fan Xian in the Overwatch Council. They were more willing to leave Fan Xian from the Overwatch Council and return to the warm embrace of civil servants. After all, Fan Xian wore the hat of a poet fairy, and was faintly the leader of the young scholars in the world. For Hu Shu, the head of the two civil servants, it was not very difficult to accept Fan Xian.
Hu Dashi and Shu Dashi are people who cherish talents and know power, so they can naturally see His Majesty's arrangements for the future, but they are a little unwilling to let Fan Xian, a bright pearl, be thrown into the darkness of the Overwatch Council like this , whether it was for the safety of the civil service system or for Fan Xian, they wanted to lure Fan Xian over.
Although it is a little early to mention this now, Master Hu has seized this rare opportunity to show the sincerity of the civil service system, and began to lay the groundwork for speeches many years in advance.
Emperor Qing had always been more tolerant and didn't care too much about the small thoughts of his courtiers, but from this matter, he felt more and more the glory that his illegitimate son... brought to the royal family.
The emperor was proud in his heart, his face was calm, and his eyes were complicated. He glanced at the Hubu Shangshu who had been silent in the queue, and his son's nominal father—Fan Jian.