Yang Ling patiently listened to the gist of the story. It turned out that High Scholar Li was also from a family of officials. His father had been the Right Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Works, and his elder brother was now an official in the Ministry of Personnel. High Scholar Li had only been betrothed to Gao Wenxin three years ago when he became an official. He had broken off his engagement with Gao Wenxin, and with his elder brother's help, he had been betrothed to Censor Liu.
Unexpectedly, a few days ago, Imperial Censor Liu suddenly annulled the marriage. The two families had not yet signed the marriage certificate. This was understandable, but High Scholar Li could not take this lying down. He went to Imperial Censor Liu's house to reason with him. Imperial Censor Liu calmly replied that he was a few years old, and only said that his daughter was mischievous and did not dare to climb up the social ladder.
High Scholar Li was chased out of the house by two servants. He heard the servants mocking him for offending Mr Yang, and for wanting to climb up the social ladder with Imperial Censor Liu. This made him suspect that Yang Ling was behind all this, and so he went to Imperial Censor Liu's house to reason with him.
Yang Ling was depressed when he heard this. This kind of dog-skin affair, how could he explain it clearly? He looked around and saw that many villagers had gathered around to watch the commotion. Yang Ling smiled and said, "Yang was born in the countryside. My family has been farming for generations. It was only when I, Yang, received the trust of the Former Emperor and the current Emperor that I was entrusted with such an important task. As an official, how could I not be loyal to the Emperor?
Yang is the Governor of the Imperial Censor Liu, and his thoughts and concerns are all over the world. Where there is rebellion, where there are corrupt officials, where there are natural disasters, and where there is an urgent need to report to the Emperor, only then will Yang interfere. Do you think that I am your Li family's matchmaker? Whether you marry a wife or take a concubine, what does that have to do with me?
As a High Scholar, you should know the laws of the Imperial Court. To make groundless accusations and flatter me, do you know your crime? Since it wasn't easy for you to earn your scholarly title, I won't bicker with you. If you have proof, you can go to Shun Tian Prefecture and sue me for ruining your marriage. If you don't have proof, please leave. "
Yang Ling used the same tone that High Scholar Li had used to reply to his letter. Then he winked at the servants beside him. The two servants had heard about High Scholar Li's disrespect towards the young miss, so they didn't like him. As soon as they saw their master's signal, they picked him up and carried him away.
High Scholar Li knew that Yang Ling was from a scholarly background and wanted to argue with him. Who would have thought that Yang Ling wouldn't even bother to argue with him. Instead, he sent people to send him away. High Scholar Li was so angry that he trembled and said, "What a disgrace, what a disgrace."
Yang Ling was a little annoyed. This matter couldn't be explained clearly, and yet the Emperor saw it. However, this wasn't a time of crisis, and he couldn't always send people to guard the gates. In the future, there would be more and more officials coming and going. If they were to see this, wouldn't they criticize him?
Yang Ling turned to the Emperor and forced a smile, "Your Majesty, there's a misunderstanding between me and my neighbor. Please forgive me."
Zhengde chuckled, "That High Scholar only suspected his neighbor of stealing the axe. What does that have to do with you? Alright, it's getting late, I'll return to the palace. "He smiled and waved his hand at the surprised Yang Ling. His family had already opened the side door and came out with a horse carriage.
It turned out that just now, Liu Jin had already told Zhengde the whole story. As the saying goes, it's easy to have someone in the court. Yang Ling couldn't defend himself, but with someone else saying it, it was easier for people to accept it.
Liu Jin had visited the Yang House far more often than Zhengde. He had long heard about High Scholar Li's annulment of the marriage. That day, Liu Yu had sent several important documents to the Imperial Palace. They were chatting about their children's marriages. Liu Jin casually mentioned a few words. Who would have guessed that Imperial Censor Liu would take it to heart? In order to avoid any ill feelings between him and Yang Ling, he actually annulled the marriage.
It must be said that Liu Yu was a smooth and slick character. He was on good terms with Jiao Fang. Although the old officials in the court hated Jiao Fang, they all admired him. In the eighth year of Cheng Hua, he passed the Imperial Examinations. He was first a county magistrate, then he was promoted to Imperial Censor. He also served as the Inspector of Shandong.
Later on, the Grand Secretary Liu Jian promoted him to be the Right Deputy Imperial Censor. After Emperor Zhengde succeeded the throne, the Minister of Personnel Ma Wensheng recommended him to be the Right Deputy Imperial Censor. He was in charge of the military affairs of Xuan Fu, Datong and Shanxi. He was also an official with real power in the court.
Liu Jin's relationship with this person was not bad. He would not say that he was afraid of the grudge between Yang Ling and the Li family. He only said that Imperial Censor Liu heard that High Scholar Li hit him when he was down and was suspicious of his character. That was why he broke off the engagement. Zhengde was the one who started this whole thing, and when he heard this, he laughed it off.
Right now, Yang Ling was no longer afraid of being bitten. There were so many officials in the court who were secretly looking for trouble with him. Why would he care about a High Scholar? Moreover, Gao Wenxin had done so much for the Yang Family and for him. He owed her a lot.
Now that High Scholar Li had come to cause trouble, the Emperor had opened his mouth and allowed Gao Wenxin to inherit her father's position as the Imperial Physician. Not only would he be able to answer to her, but he would also be able to comfort her father's soul in heaven.
After sending off Zhengde, Yang Ling excitedly rushed to the back garden. Cheng Qiyun had been following beside him. Seeing his expression, she softly said, "Daren does not need to be anxious. Just now, the old housekeeper has already sent someone to the back garden to report."
Yang Ling let out an "oh" and realized that he was a little too anxious. He couldn't help but let out an embarrassed smile and said, "It's good that you know. She was originally a noble young mistress. Even though the Yang family had never treated her as a servant, that identity had always made her feel inferior. Now, I've finally relieved one of my worries."
Cheng Qiyun thought about her own past and couldn't help but feel sorry for herself. After a moment of silence, she said, "Although Miss Wen Xin was unfortunate, it was her good fortune to have met daren."
As she said this, her eyes became a little dazed. After a pause, she softly said, "She was demoted to an official's slave. Even after her father died, she couldn't wear mourning clothes. If daren wants to do something for her, then set up a mourning hall for Imperial Physician Gao in the side room. Tomorrow, let the relatives of the Gao Family go to the grave to pay their respects and fulfill the heart of a daughter. "
Yang Ling looked at her with joy and praised, "Women are still so meticulous. Why didn't I think of all this. Housekeeper, old housekeeper …"
※ ※ ※
One would only know how many obstacles there were if they did it. Yang Ling originally thought that the difficulty would be to persuade the officials to agree to lift the ban on the sea. Who would have expected that this new crop policy would be met with fierce opposition from the officials.
Although Yang Ling and the Eight Tigers were now above Li Dongyang in power and could be said to have power that could overturn the court, and Liu and Xie's departure from the court caused most of the officials to remain silent. But such a major matter that concerned the people's livelihood and the country, the officials would not be careless.
Whether the new crop was suitable to grow in the various places of Ming Destiny and what its yield was, who would dare to take the risk without knowing the root cause? Once this report was presented, there was immediately a surge of public sentiment and unbridled attacks. The court that had just calmed down was suddenly in turmoil again.
Fortunately, Jiao Fang was astute and did not speak out for Yang Ling's suggestion. Instead, he instructed his good friend, Zhang Cai, who was in charge of the Ministry of Personnel, to speak out. Zhang Cai's words carried little weight and it was not a big deal to be scolded by others. Anyway, she was just a small official and would at most be accused of frivolity and it would not cause Yang Ling, Liu Jin, Jiao Fang and the others to fall into a passive position in the court.
After listening to Jiao Fang's report, Yang Ling could not help but frown. This matter was not the fault of the officials. It was unimaginable in any dynasty to promote something unknown to the whole country. Because he knew the characteristics of this crop, he was negligent. But could this be used as evidence to convince the officials?
Yang Ling took a look at Jiao Fang. The old man's brows were tightly knitted and he was twirling his beard, looking like he was at his wit's end. Yang Ling could not help but laugh bitterly. Looking at Jiao Fang's appearance, he was not sure if this crop could produce a high yield or if it was suitable to grow. Even his best friend did not have confidence, it was no wonder that the officials were so cautious.
Yang Ling was silent for a moment and slowly said, "The Zhu Zhishan that I mentioned to you last time has now returned to Suzhou with the grain seeds and craftsmen to the capital. When the time comes, arrange for him to go to Hunan's Taoyuan to be the county magistrate. First, he will try to plant in a county."
"All right," Jiao Fang said, "But if he only tries to plant it in one place, even if it is effective, it cannot prove that this crop called corn and sweet potato is suitable to grow everywhere."
Yang Ling nodded. "Not only that," he said, "If that's the case, the ban will have to wait until the year after next. Therefore, next year there must be a good harvest in a province, and it must prove that this crop is suitable to grow everywhere. Only then will Li Dongyang and Yang Tinghe, the two Grand Scholars, and their people express their support."
He thought for a moment and then said, "The Deputy Commissioner of the Haining Salt Transport Division, Min Wenjian, first beheaded the Tatar Prince, and also had the merit of fighting against the Wokou pirates. Ask those people in the Imperial Envoy Station to help him build up momentum. He will be promoted to the Deputy Commander of the Zhejiang Command Division. He will start the reclamation of the wasteland in the Jiangnan army.
Other than that, farming cannot be separated from the Ministry of Revenue. Move the Hanlin Academy's Yan Song to the Ministry of Revenue's Langzhong, let him mediate everything. He is the thin and tall Hanlin whom you saw the day before yesterday. "
Speaking of Yan Song, Yang Ling could not help smiling slightly. This famous treacherous official in history was actually cautious and astute. He had been back in the capital for so long, yet he did not dare to pay a visit. It was only until the court had calmed down and his own power had been established that he was not in danger of standing on the wrong side that he was willing to come forward. However, since he valued power and influence, he was not afraid that he would not be used by me.
Jiao Fang nodded her head repeatedly, secretly making a note in her heart. Yang Ling remembered that pitiful worm Zhang Cai who stood up for him. He could not help but ask, "Zhang Cai is under attack by hundreds of officials, is he still able to stand up?"
Jiao Fang smiled and said, "No matter, the officials in the court have been stifled for a long time these days, that Zhang Cai has only become a punching bag. He is just a small manager, a barefooted person is not afraid of wearing shoes, those people have no other way to deal with this troublemaker. Besides, he and Liu Gonggong are from the same hometown in Shaanxi, and Liu Gonggong appreciates him very much. If it were not for my persuasion, Liu Gonggong would have promoted him."
Yang Ling could not help but chuckle and asked, "Can this person be used?"
Jiao Fang was silent for a moment, then slowly said, "This person is a Jinshi, smart and capable. Although he is young, he is well versed in the ways of officialdom. This time, before he sent the letter to test me, he once said to this old man that he will be attacked by hundreds of officials, his vision is indeed unique, but he is greedy for money and lustful, this is the most criticized aspect of him."
Yang Ling sighed, those who can be used by him are a bunch of crooked melons and split dates, those who are morally deficient but are truly talented are already rare. He will hold on for now, after winning over Li Dongyang and Yang Tinghe's support, he will have a lot of people to use. He decisively said, "I will not use him, but Liu Jin still needs to use him. Take advantage of the attack by hundreds of officials to demote him, demote him, and secretly promote him to be the Minister of Revenue. This position is not in our hands, it is really a great restriction."
Jiao Fang replied, "Milord should also pay attention to the Ministry of Appointments, only when the power to promote hundreds of officials is in your hands, will it be easy and smooth, like a fish in water. Now that we are only adjusting some officials, Ma Wensheng does not dare to not give you face, but if Milord wants to show his strength, the Ministry of Appointments, the Ministry of Rites, and the Ministry of War must listen to you."
Yang Ling knew that Ma Wensheng has always been on bad terms with his former superior, although Ma Wensheng's reminder was out of good intentions, there was also the intention of using him to punish Ma Wensheng, but Ma Wensheng is in power and highly respected, now that the court has just stabilized, such an important position that can affect the overall situation cannot be moved.
Wang Hua of the Ministry of Rites pursues the path of moderation, acts according to the rules, and has always been on good terms with him. In addition, his son is still in prison because he offended Liu Jin, after a few days, when Liu Jin's anger subsides, Yang Ling will ask him to be released, and with this favor, he will not make things difficult for Yang Ling.
Although Liu Daxia of the Ministry of War does not think highly of Yang Ling, the military officials under the old man are still polite to Yang Ling, in addition to his position as the Commander of the Imperial Bodyguards, he can more or less intervene in the affairs of the Ministry of War, and at present, there is no need to take over the Ministry of War.
Thinking of this, Yang Ling shook his head, saying, "Take it slowly, the foundation is not stable, this kind of matter cannot be rushed."
He stood up, smiled, and said, "Let's go, I will accompany you back to the city, to persuade His Majesty to first try planting in a province of land, I have to go to the palace."
Sitting in the sedan chair, Yang Ling lifted the curtain of the sedan chair, looked at the desolate fields, and quietly thought about his own matters, "After Liu Jin grasped power, he began to secretly promote his own confidants, without informing me.
Liu Jin is illiterate, and it is a little difficult for him to read the memorials, but now he has his son-in-law Sun Cong, and a failed scholar named Zhang Wenmian, the three of them, the memorials to the throne have become more and more presentable. This person is the most ambitious of the Eight Tigers, and although they are now allies, Yang Ling still has to guard against him.
In the future, he must attach importance to Zhang Yong, Gu Daeyong, and the others. He cannot always be at the Emperor's side, but as long as these eunuchs, who can compete with Liu Jin, stand by his side, Liu Jin will obediently listen to him.
Now that he wants to try planting in a province, this matter will probably fall on Liu Jin's shoulders. Didn't he just promote a Right Deputy Imperial Censor named Cao Yuan to be the Prefect of Shaanxi? That is Liu Jin's hometown, and Liu Jin has a very strong sense of home. As long as he understands the practical benefits, and with the trusted aides that he has promoted to be in charge of Shaanxi, the implementation of the new farming will definitely be twice the result with half the effort.
Yang Ling let out a breath, turning into a white fog in the cold weather. There is not much green on the roadside, the willow trees and locust trees all have withered branches. Looking down, the fertile soil that has been harvested and plowed over has become a patch of soil.
Yang Ling's heart heated up. What if he tries planting in these seven Imperial Plantations first? Sweet potatoes grow quickly, and they can be planted three times a year. In May and June, there will be a large harvest. At that time, there will be mountains of food, and all the civil and military officials will see it with their own eyes. Isn't this more convincing than talking about lotus flowers?
But the land in the Imperial Plantations also has its own landlords. The palace is only bypassing the court to collect grain taxes. Can I convince the landlords to plant high-yield crops? Yang Ling carefully calculated. The surrounding seven Imperial Plantations are owned by six big landlords. Li Juren controls nearly a thousand mu of land, so there is almost no need to consider him. The other six landlords also have their own backgrounds, and it will be difficult to convince them. Using forceful methods is even more unwise. What should I do?
Yang Ling thought all the way to the capital. Arriving at the palace gate, Yang Ling and Jiao Fang alighted from the sedan chair and handed over their dental plates to enter the palace. Jiao Fang bid farewell and returned to the Imperial Library Pavilion to read through memorials. Yang Ling arrived at the Palace of Heavenly Purity and saw that it was completely empty. There were only two eunuchs on duty, curled up in their chairs and dozing off.
When Yang Ling asked, he found out that Emperor Zhengde had learned a new play and excitedly ran to the rear palace to invite the First Empress Dowager, the Empress Dowager, the various concubines, and the princesses to personally go on stage to sing.
Yang Ling didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He sat idly in the Palace of Heavenly Purity for a while, thinking that Zhengde won't be back for a while, so he got up and went straight to the Department of Rites. The little eunuch guarding the door had accompanied Liu Jin to the Yang House several times. As soon as he saw Yang Ling, he hastily laughed and saluted. In a loud voice he called out, "Yang Ling, Mister Yang has arrived!"
Yang Ling laughed and said, "Even if you shout loudly, I won't have any money to reward you. Later on I don't need to announce my arrival."
As Yang Ling stepped into the room, he was welcomed by a square mahogany table and a chair with official hats on it. To his left and right were the same rooms with thick curtains. Yang Ling turned to the right and lifted the door curtain to enter. He saw the room was brightly lit by four red candles.
On the kang was a decorated red sandalwood kang table, with several stacks of official documents piled on top. With a smile on his face, Liu Jin was slipping down from the kang to take off his shoes. As soon as he saw Yang Ling coming in, he could not help but chuckling and said, "Mister Yang, you came just in time. I was just about to go and see you tomorrow."
Yang Ling laughed and said, "I didn't expect Gong-gong to be here at all. I heard that His Majesty is in the rear palace, going on stage to sing a big play, and it's even a female role. Gong-gong isn't waiting on the side?"
Liu Jin remembered the absurd way the young Emperor of Zhengde pinched his throat and pretended to be a woman, and could not help laughing in spite of himself. He went down to invite Yang Ling to take a seat, and then called out to the outside, "Little brat with no eyesight, hurry up and serve some tea."
Turning his head toward Yang Ling, he said with a laugh, "Today is not like the past, I also want to be by His Majesty's side all the time, but there are too many memorials to be sorted out. The memorials written by those officials are almost the same as singing a big play, very slow. If you don't read the last sentence, you won't know what they want to do. It can make people anxious to death. Right now Ma Yongcheng is accompanying His Majesty."
Yang Ling knew that he did not understand much of those memorials, so he often brought them home and let the scholar he hired explain them to him. Afterwards, he would bring up Li Dongyang, Jiao Fang, and Yang Tinghe's suggestions and discuss them with his niece and son-in-law while drinking tea. In the end, he would pick a suitable one to confirm.
These were all jokes that Gu Daeyong told him when he came to see him. Naturally, Yang Ling would not expose him.
The two of them chatted for a while. Yang Ling saw that there were only the two of them in the room, and that it was appropriate to persuade him to try planting sweet potatoes in his hometown. He said, "I have a matter to discuss with Gong-gong."
Unexpectedly, Liu Jin coincidentally said, "I have a matter to discuss with daren."
As soon as the words left their mouths, they were stunned for a moment before bursting into laughter. Yang Ling waved his hand and said with a smile, "This matter of mine is troublesome to talk about. What does Gong-gong want to discuss? Let's hear it first."
Liu Jin leaned forward and picked up a thick memorial from the table. He said, "Now that I am in charge of the internal court, I cannot help but contribute to the politics of the court. I saw that daren proposed to lift the ban on trade to benefit the country and the people. I was inspired, so I stayed up for a few nights and came up with some ideas on how to get rid of the corruption of politics. I want to present it to the Emperor."
Yang Ling was stunned. Looking at Liu Jin's serious and excited expression, he found it hard to laugh. He coughed twice and asked, "What does Gong-gong want to propose?"
Liu Jin excitedly said, "I thought about it for three nights. It involved the five ministries of government, revenue, military, labor, and punishment. I came up with a total of 46 ideas on law, clean government, governance of government officials, household records, land, money, and grain."
He smiled modestly and said, "Actually … I still have some suggestions. It's just that I haven't thought of the corresponding methods yet, so I won't bring them up this time."
Yang Ling swallowed with difficulty. His eyes widened as he looked at this pioneer of reform. He couldn't even say a word.
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