My father is Jiajing

Chapter 250 The Honest Prince Yu
Zhu Zaigui calmed himself down and thought, how could he describe the relationship between himself and Hai Rui in this way?
You must know that you are the king and Hai Rui is the minister.

How could this be?
Moreover, Hai Rui's number one "suck-up" in history should be the wealthy Wang Yongji.

Wang Yongji pursued Hai Rui's fans all the way. He was willing to sacrifice his family fortune and offend many people to protect Hai Rui from harm. In the end, he even spent money and effort to hold a decent funeral for Hai Rui.

Just based on this point, Wang Yongji can definitely be called Hai Rui's number one fan!

However, Wang Yongjiying is only in his early twenties now, and is still a rich young man in his hometown of Quanzhou. He has not yet set his mind on the imperial examination and official career, so the point of intersection between his fate and that of Hai Rui will not occur until another ten or twenty years later.

Now Zhu Zaigui collected his thoughts and continued, "This time I summoned you to the palace not for you to enjoy a leisurely life. You should also know that I was appointed by His Majesty as the chief official for the expansion of the capital, right?"

Hai Rui replied, "I know."

Zhu Zaiqi hummed, "That's good to know. The reason I summoned you to my palace is actually because of this matter. Mr. Gao should have also told you how dangerous this matter is. Are you really willing to take on the important task of supervising the expansion of the capital for me?"

Hai Rui took a deep breath and replied in an extremely firm tone: "I am willing!"

Zhu Zaigui looked at Hai Rui's resolute expression and heard his affirmative answer, and he couldn't help but feel relieved. It seemed that Hai Gangfeng was still the same Hai Gangfeng, still the Hai Gangfeng who was not afraid of anything but was capable of doing things.

Zhu Zaigui said in a good mood, "Okay! The judge invites you to have tea."

Zhu Zaigui raised the teacup towards Hai Rui, and Hai Rui quickly raised the teacup towards Zhu Zaigui in return, then drank the tea in the cup in one gulp.

Zhu Zaigui looked at Hai Rui who had just finished drinking his tea and couldn't help laughing again. He continued, "You can relax for a few days. After I have dealt with the preliminary preparations for the expansion of the capital, you can take over my position and supervise the progress of the Ministry of Works and Shuntian Prefecture."

But then Zhu Zaigui's tone changed.

Zhu Zaigui said: "But before that, you have to go to the Ministry of Revenue and help the Ministry of Works to get back the first batch of project funds agreed upon by the court as soon as possible. Then supervise the use of this money and do not allow anyone to embezzle or borrow it under any excuse or reason."

Zhu Zaigui's words were not nonsense.

Because when Emperor Jiajing issued an edict to appoint him as the chief official for the expansion of the capital, he had already given Zhu Zaigui the plan for the expansion of the capital presented by Ouyang Bijin, and asked Zhu Zaigui to make some revisions before handing it over to the Ministry of Works and Shuntian Prefecture for construction.

So Zhu Zaigui was not really idle during this period. He had transferred Zhang Tianci back and brought a team of surveyors to start collecting detailed data for the area to be expanded outside the capital.

After these data were collected, Zhu Zaigui asked Zhang Tianci to continue making new changes to the Ministry of Industry's design draft.

Therefore, Zhu Zaigui would never start construction without a month or so of preparation time.

At the same time, Zhu Zaigui also ordered the Ministry of Works to hand over the project funds to the Ministry of Revenue as soon as possible, and to convert the first installment of the project funds into bricks, tiles, stones and other building materials needed for the expansion of the capital, so as to avoid having to buy them on the spot when the construction really started, which would cause delays.

Now that Hai Rui has taken up his post, the matter of asking for money naturally falls on his shoulders.

After all, he had just come out of the Ministry of Revenue and was familiar with the people there, so it was extremely appropriate for him to go and collect the project payment.

After hearing Zhu Zaigui's arrangement, Hai Rui was slightly stunned. Then he bowed to Zhu Zaigui and said truthfully, "Your Highness, this may be difficult. The Ministry of Revenue has almost used up all the money. I don't think I can get much money back if I go now."

Unexpectedly, Zhu Zaigui's face immediately darkened, and he said to Hai Rui rudely: "Does this king want to hear your answer? If everyone tells this king that they have difficulties, then should this king still do his job?"

"Since the Ministry of Revenue can use this silver, then they should be prepared to return it. You are representing me now. If you admit defeat before you even make a move, then what use is there for me to have you?" Zhu Zaigui said this directly to Hai Rui's face, making him feel a little at a loss.

But Hai Rui's ability to withstand pressure was still very strong. He didn't say those words just now to evade responsibility, but just wanted to tell Zhu Zaigui a fact.

Who knew that after hearing this, Zhu Zaigui immediately turned hostile.

From this, it can be seen that the prince in front of him does not seem to be the weak person that we usually see and imagine. His attitude towards things and people is still very methodical, and he will not blindly appease.

This was undoubtedly a very positive signal for Hai Rui. At least it showed that Prince Yu had a strong character and was very opinionated. Working under such a master, as long as he had a clear direction and received support, he would surely achieve success!
So Hai Rui immediately bowed and said, "I acknowledge my guilt. I will definitely make a smooth transition with the Ministry of Revenue, smoothly transfer the first batch of silver needed for the capital's expansion to the Ministry of Works, and strictly monitor all movements of this silver."

Zhu Zaiqi was very satisfied after seeing Hai Rui's reaction. He immediately smiled gently and said, "Just do your best, Hai Rui. No matter what the result is, I will not blame you."

Zhu Zaigui chatted with Hai Rui for a few more words and then let Hai Rui leave.

After leaving Prince Yu's Mansion, Hai Rui also felt a lot of pressure, but the more so, the more motivated he became.

Inside the palace, Meng Chong looked at Zhu Zaigui and said worriedly, "Your Highness, Hai Rui has only been an official for a year. Can he defeat those old-timers in the Ministry of Revenue? Is this silver worth taking?"

Zhu Zaigui said nonchalantly, "Of course it's not easy to ask for it, but he is Hai Rui. I believe he will find a way to pry open the Ministry of Revenue's silver vault and help me move the silver out. Otherwise, do you want me to pay for the expansion of the capital? How is that possible? You should know that my silver has been coveted by His Majesty, who dares to touch a penny?"

What Zhu Zaigui said was a sign of things to come, because according to some information that Huang Jinping had received during casual conversations, Zhu Zaigui already knew why Emperor Jiajing promoted Chen Hong to the Imperial Household Department. It turned out that it was to check the accounts.

When Zhu Zaigui guessed this, he couldn't help but complain in his heart: "This is really too much. How can a father care about his son's money?"

But the situation is stronger than the person. Since everyone is thinking about it, it is better to be direct, so as not to hide it and arouse the suspicion of the old Taoist priest.

Anyway, no matter how badly he behaved, he was still a prince of the Ming Dynasty and would have a life of luxury. There was no need for him to play tricks on the old Taoist priest for those material things.

Just consider it as a token of your loyalty!
As long as I can make my life better, that's enough.

Anyway, the old Taoist priest has already caught me in many cases, so one more won't make much difference, but one less will not do.

After all, the emperor's heart is as deep as the abyss. Who can guess the emperor's true thoughts?

It is better to hand over the evidence honestly and gain more trust, which is the most cost-effective deal.

Otherwise, I might not be able to do anything.

Isn't that GG?

Therefore, Zhu Zaigui was not afraid at all that Emperor Jiajing would check his accounts. After all, that was how he spent the money and how he earned it, and he had never hidden it from anyone.

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(End of this chapter)