Prince Chongzhen

Chapter 251 Moving the capital?

Qian Qianyi finally made it.

After experiencing the disappointment of the Chongzhen Dynasty and the suppression of the Hongguang Dynasty, he finally ascended to the position of Prime Minister that he had dreamed of for half his life under Zhu Cilang, but he was just half a step away.

However, the difference of half a step is not that big. In fact, because the current lord is used to leading troops to war, Qian Qianyi's power as the "acting" prime minister is much greater than those in the past.

As a result, his mansion, which originally had few visitors, now became crowded with people.

"Hey, Brother Li, it's been a while since we last met. How have you been?"

"It's Brother Wang. TOEFL, TOEFL, everything is fine, everything is fine."

At this time, there were already quite a few people waiting on the street outside the Qian Mansion. Among them, there were two middle-aged men in Confucian robes who started chatting very intimately as soon as they met.

"Brother Li, are you here to express your gratitude as well?"

The word "also" is very clever. On the one hand, it euphemistically expresses that I have seen through you, and on the other hand, it expresses that I am the same.

In this way, the question, which was originally a bit abrupt, seemed natural.

"That's right. I have wasted many years and am now almost forty. If it weren't for your wisdom and the support of the elder, I would never have been able to wait until this day to come to the fore." At this point, the emotion on the face of the scholar surnamed Wang was suddenly replaced by embarrassment, and then he continued: "But the elder is busy with many things every day, so I won't be able to see him."

"It's okay, it's okay. Whether we can meet or not is one thing. What's important for us to express our feelings this time is that we must let the elder recognize us."

"That's right! That's right! Brother Wang, what you said is exactly what I want."

Because of their similar identities, the two of them immediately had more topics to talk about, and later on they even talked about the deep-seated interests involved.

"Brother Wang, I wonder how much money your family invested in this voyage?"

"It's not much. The clan gave 50,000 taels, but we didn't expect to make much money. It's just to help the court and His Highness."

"Ah~~, yes, Your Highness is carrying such a heavy burden at such a young age. We are all blessed by the Emperor, but we can only do our best to help."

Although they said nice things on the surface, they all knew in their hearts that this was probably just a risky investment.

They can spend some money now without any loss. If His Royal Highness the Crown Prince really opens up the sea route in the future, they will be able to catch up with this wave with ease.

As time went by, the two of them talked more and more, but matters like these involving huge interests require one to know everything and to say simple words with deep meanings, so after saying a few words, the scholar surnamed Wang changed the subject.

"Brother Li, have you ever heard of the Advisory Council?"

"Of course I have heard of it."

"But I don't know what you think?"

"Your Highness is kind-hearted."

At this point, anyone who paid some attention would know how much effort that group of clerks and servants had put in when His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was besieged in Yingtian.

Therefore, in the eyes of most people, this Advisory Council was actually specially set up by His Highness to reward meritorious service.

The logic behind this is actually very simple.

Clerks and runners cannot take the official path, but if they travel around the local area under the name of the Advisory Council, they can naturally take up a low-ranking position in the local government.

In this way, the lowly status could be easily gotten rid of. Although the later generations might not necessarily be able to embark on the official path of imperial examinations, it would not be difficult for them to gain a reputation of passing down the family tradition of farming and studying with the money they had plundered over the years.

These clerks and runners just happened to encounter the siege of the city by the Tartars, and they just happened to do their job. Just for their hard work, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince rewarded them with such a means that can change the fate of the family. How can it not be kindness?

In response to the scholar surnamed Wang's statement, the man surnamed Li seemed to agree with it, but also seemed to have other ideas. However, when they were about to continue the conversation, they saw the side door of Qian's mansion open, and a young man was welcomed in.

"Who is this?"

"The son of the Annan family."

"Oh~~? It turned out to be him. I heard that he also went to sea this time?"

"Yes, it was the general that His Highness personally appointed."

Seeing the side door slowly closing, Wang and Li continued talking, but they could not hide their envy.

But they didn't know that while they envied the Prince of Annan who was able to enter the Qian Mansion through the side door, there were many people who envied them for being able to wait at the door of the Qian Mansion.

"Please wait in the hall for a moment, my master has gone to discuss matters with the officials in the court. He will probably be back in a few minutes."

After leading Zheng Sen to the living room, the old servant told him where his master had gone, and at the same time asked the servants to bring him the best tea, fruits and snacks.

Zheng Sen's treatment was not entirely due to the old servant of the Qian family's discrimination. After all, he was also a formal student of Qian Qianyi and even lived here for more than a year.

At this time, considering his relationship with the Qian family, it was natural for him to be treated like this.

"We are all family, so you don't have to be polite, Mr. Qian."

The two exchanged a few more polite words, and then the old servant took his leave.

But who would have thought that before the tea had even cooled down, the old servant would leave again.

"Young Master, the master wants you to go to the study."

"The teacher is back?"

"Well, he doesn't look very well."

After hearing this, Zheng Sen bowed and walked back into the courtyard. After passing three or four doorways, he stopped at the gate of an extremely elegant courtyard.

"Student Zheng Sen greets the teacher."

"come in."

Hearing Qian Qianyi's voice coming from inside, Zheng Sen straightened his clothes slightly and walked in as ordered.

Although Qian Qianyi was in the study at this time, he was still wearing the bright red official robe. It was obvious that he went straight to the study without even changing his clothes after entering the mansion.

"Teacher, you have lost weight."

Faced with the sincere words of his students, Qian Qianyi, who had been the "acting" Prime Minister for several months, suddenly felt mixed emotions. To be honest, although he had seen many love affairs in the court and the opposition for so many years, he had not really handled many practical matters. After taking office, this old minister who witnessed the rapid decline of the Ming Dynasty truly understood how to write the word "difficult".

Take the selection of local officials as an example.

From the perspective of the local forces in Nanzhili, they would feel that "they didn't lose so many prefectures and counties under Ma Shiying, so how come you lost cities and territories and collapsed as soon as you came to power? Is there something fishy going on here?"

From the perspective of other parties, they would feel that "Your Nanzhili performed extremely poorly when the Tartar invaded, and under such circumstances, you, Qian Qianyi, actually had the nerve to help Nanzhili fight for a quota. How can you be worthy of being the real prime minister with such partiality?"

It’s like what we are discussing today about He Tengjiao’s reward.

Everyone knew that it was impossible for the thief to die at the hands of He Tengjiao, but His Royal Highness the Crown Prince issued an edict asking the officials to discuss his reward.

Under such circumstances, no matter whether those cunning guys really didn't understand the trick or were pretending to be stupid, in the end, the tone had to be set by him, the "acting" prime minister.

In this way, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince not only perfectly avoided the "blood feud" problem by rewarding He Tengjiao, but also put another tight ring around his head.

As long as he, the Prime Minister, is disobedient in any way, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince can easily conclude from the clues that he has been "deceived".

At that time, He Tengjiao would certainly not be able to escape the charge of "deceiving the emperor", and he, as the "acting" prime minister, would naturally have to bear the responsibility of "negligence".

Of course, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince who issued the decree naturally also has responsibilities, but as a monarch who was "blinded" by his subjects, he can easily get rid of one or two disobedient ministers at the cost of losing some face. This deal is extremely cost-effective no matter how you look at it.

As for the covetous Ma Shiying and the harmless Yuan Jixian, there is no need to mention them. Although they did not make the real move, they also made some moves openly and secretly.

How could Qian Qianyi, who was in such a position where he had to suffer from many bullies and had to guard against open and covert attacks, not reduce his profits when he was walking on thin ice?

"I am old, so I am naturally thinner," Qian Qianyi tried to control his emotions and no longer dwelled on it. With a warm smile on his face, he asked directly, "Did Da Mu see anything during his trip to Southeast Asia?"

Seeing that his teacher's expression seemed unnatural, the young Zheng Sen just thought it was due to emotional excitement.

After bowing again, he reported the details of the voyage in detail.

Before getting the support of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, Tan Changyuan just wanted to see if he could use his personal connections to get leniency for his own fleet.

But with official support, he not only organized a caravan consisting of dozens of large ships of thousands of tons, but also sailed it to the other side of the Southeast Peninsula.

At this time of year, such behavior would certainly be extremely risky.

In order to monopolize the trade with the Ming Dynasty, the Red Hairs not only killed any Ming Dynasty caravans they encountered, but also robbed Taiwan from the Zheng family as their base. The hostile French people, whether out of fear of the Red Hairs or other ideas, would openly refuse to trade directly with the Ming Dynasty caravans.

Under such circumstances, most of the fleets that were able to escape the blockade of the Red-haired fleet in Taiwan could only reach Champa and then unload their cargoes and return, let alone cross the Western sphere of influence to Siam.

But who would have thought that this trip would be surprisingly smooth.

Not only were grain prices only about two-thirds of previous years' in Jiangnan due to Siam's bumper harvest, but even the shipping routes that should have been fraught with danger were also able to pass through safely.

In the end, they transported back more than 70,000 stones of rice. Apart from losing four merchant ships on the way back, they did not encounter any obstacles at all.

Of course, this amount of food is far from what Jiangnan needs, but as long as the ships continue to ship, it can be guaranteed that Jiangnan will not suffer from famine before the lean season.

Qian Qianyi nodded continuously as he listened.

He didn't care much about the loss of four merchant ships. After all, things at sea were full of risks. What did it matter if such a large fleet lost only four merchant ships?
"Good, as long as there is no famine, good, as long as there is no famine, good!"

As he continued praising him, Mr. Qian naturally had even more respect for His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.

Over the past thousand years, the central government's methods of dealing with famine have been nothing more than opening warehouses to provide relief and transferring grain from other provinces. But now the Ming Dynasty has not only lost half of its territory, but even the land of fish and rice has been ravaged by war. Such methods have no basis for implementation.

Originally, these important officials in the court had been mentally prepared to face famine and even civil unrest, and had prepared sufficient ammunition for the subsequent changes in the power structure.

But who would have thought that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince would actually create a way out of the impossible, and such a huge disaster was avoided without any trace, and his position as "Prime Minister Qian" would not have to go through any more twists and turns.

How could such a situation not make Qian Qianyi excited and applaud?

just
"Da Mu, what is your father's attitude now?"

This turn of events was quite abrupt, and Zheng Sen, who was originally filled with joy, was a little confused. However, when he saw his teacher's expression suddenly become serious, he had to answer solemnly.

"Teacher, please understand. My Zheng family is descended from pirates. The elders in the family are inevitably selfish. But I dare to guarantee with my life that my Zheng family is absolutely loyal to the Ming Dynasty!"

Faced with the assurance of his own student, Qian Qianyi couldn't help but think about it in his heart.

Earlier, the reason why he took in the son of this pirate family was, to put it bluntly, because he saw that the financial resources and power of the Zheng family could help him make a comeback.

But after Zheng Sen had lived in his house for nearly two years, he couldn't help but wonder, who says a rat's son must dig holes? Or a pirate's son must become a pirate?

Although the Zheng family was a powerful bandit clan that roamed the seas, Zheng Sen was a loyal and patriotic man.

From this, he once again had an idea in his mind: Can he use Zheng Sen's influence to make the Zheng family stand aside and watch during this drastic change?

"Da Mu, I will not hide it from you. Fujian has not yet expressed its position on Your Highness's supervision of state affairs. Everyone in the court believes that this is the Earl of Annan waiting for a good price."

"old."

As soon as he finished speaking, Zheng Sen was about to defend the Zheng family, but before he could utter a word, his teacher waved his hand to interrupt him.

"Originally, this is nothing. For example, in Guangdong and Guangxi, if Ding Kuichu had not been connected with the Jingjiang Rebel King, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince would not have blamed him for having such a congratulatory letter."

Qian Qianyi pointed to a book on the table, and waited until Zheng Sen saw the words on the cover before he continued, "Another example is He Tengjiao from Hunan. Your Highness knew his difficulties, so he not only did not blame him for not sending a congratulatory letter, but instead rewarded him after asking for the reason."

Zheng Sen followed Qian Qianyi's instructions and looked at another letter on the table. But before he could read it clearly, his teacher continued, "But the situation is different now. If the Earl of Annan continues to pretend to be deaf and dumb, not only His Highness, but also the officials in the court will not tolerate your Zheng family."

"teacher?"

Having said that, even though Zheng Sen still had some shortcomings in court affairs, he understood that his teacher was hinting at him in an almost explicit way to persuade the Zheng family to submit a congratulatory message as soon as possible.

It was just a hint, so what did "the situation is different" mean? That's why he looked up at Qian Qianyi.

"Hongguang wants to move the capital to Huai'an."

There is an Easter egg at the end of this chapter, which roughly describes the current distribution of various forces. One thing that needs to be noted is that at this stage, Zhu Cilang's control over various parts of the Ming Dynasty varies greatly.

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(End of this chapter)