On the 18th of May, Emperor Zhengde ascended Cheng 'anmen (Tian' anmen) and announced to the world that the new Emperor had ascended the throne.
He placed the imperial edict in the mouth of a golden phoenix and personally tied a yellow silk ribbon around the phoenix's neck. The head eunuch of the Ceremony Directorate lowered the phoenix along the battlements. Below the battlements, the officials of the Ministry of Rites knelt on the ground and held up a golden lacquer plate decorated with clouds to receive the edict. Then they quickly sent it to the Ministry of Rites to be copied and printed to announce to the world that Zhengde had officially become the Emperor of Ming Destiny. This was the "Golden Phoenix Imperial Edict".
Then Emperor Zhengde returned to the Throne Room under the escort of hundreds of officials. He ascended the Dragon Throne and received the congratulations of the officials. At this time, the various vassal kings and the envoys from the four barbarian countries were still on the way.
After Zhengde took his place, he immediately announced the three imperial edicts. The various ministries and departments immediately carried them out swiftly and decisively.
The first imperial edict was prepared by Wang Qiong, Minister of the Ministry of Rites, who had been thrown into prison on his first day in office. "The Emperor of Heaven, Ming, Pure, Honest, Righteous, Holy, Wise, Merciful, Virtuous and Honorable Emperor". Emperor Xiaozong had passed away and requested the entire country to be in mourning.
The subjects were all in mourning, with white cloth wrapped around their hats. After the new Emperor's ascension ceremony, all the officials in the capital still had to wear mourning clothes. They were not allowed to wear court boots and replace them with straw sandals. They also had to remove the wings of their gauze hats and replace them with white cloth that hung down to their shoulders.
The bells of the various monasteries rang thirty thousand times, day and night. Within three days, the officials of the fourth rank and above went to the Palace of Heavenly Purity in batches to attend the funeral. Each person cried fifteen times under the direction of the Minister Counsellor of the Ministry of Rites. All of the mourners moved in coordination, crying when they cried, crying when they stopped. The Palace of Heavenly Purity was like a symphony.
The second imperial edict was the result of several negotiations between Emperor Zhengde and the three scholars, as well as the Six Ministries and Nine Ministers. Finally, under the threat of not being the Emperor, it was decided. It ordered the Left Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Rites, Li Jie, Deputy Director of the Observing Sky Officials, Eunuch Dai Yi, Left Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Works, Li Duo, and Shenji Battalion Left Sentry General Yang Ling to supervise the construction of the Hongzhi Emperor's Tailing project.
Due to Emperor Zhengde's shamelessness, the scholars of the Cabinet had no choice but to give in and put Yang Ling among the officials responsible for supervising the construction of the mausoleum. However, in the imperial edict, Yang Ling, who had no ambition, felt sorry for Emperor Zhengde. He didn't care about the painstaking effort.
To others, supervising the construction of the mausoleum was not only an honorable matter, but also a great help to one's future career. Yang Ling, on the other hand, was eager to be in command. All he needed to do was run errands. Not only did he not have the ability to run around the mausoleum every day to preside over the ceremony, but he also didn't want to.
Instead, the scholars made things difficult for him. Now, Yang Ling was only responsible for commanding the tens of thousands of officers and soldiers transferred from the Commander-In-Chief's Office of the Five Armies and the three major battalions. As soon as the personnel were in place, the Ministry of Rites, the Ministry of Works, and the Observing Sky Sky Officials began to give orders. Yang Ling practically became an idler. People couldn't be bothered to see him, and he didn't have to be there every day. He was happy to be free and unfettered.
On the third imperial edict, Emperor Zhengde raised his butcher's knife. He vented all the anger he had suffered from the civil officials on those unlucky people. Because Emperor Xiaozong suddenly bled to death after taking medicine, the eunuch Zhang Yu, the Imperial Hospital's Deputy Director Liu Wentai, and the imperial physician Gao Tinghe, who served Emperor Xiaozong, were executed. The Imperial Hospital's Deputy Director Shi Qin was removed from his post, and Taichang Temple's Shaoqing Li Zongzhou and other relevant officials were demoted.
What baffled the officials was that the Shenji Battalion's Deputy Brigadier Bao Jinchen, Commissary Liu Shiyong, Procurement Officer Bao Jinzhong, and more than ten other generals were also dragged to the caishikou to be executed. Brigadier Bao and Commissary Liu were escorted out of the Celestial Prison, but Bao Jinzhong was taken from the Imperial Bodyguard. When the executioner verified his identity, it really took a lot of effort.
Although Qian Ning was very considerate to him, he did not use any of the life-threatening tortures, such as intestine extraction, exercise, hanging from his spine, knee gouging, or scrubbing, but he was tormented so much that even his cousin Bao Canjiang could not recognize him.
At this time, the prisoners on the execution ground all had pale faces. Only Brigadier Bao was in high spirits, and couldn't wait to be executed. For a moment, he won a round of applause from the crowd.
Miao Kui received a secret order from the Former Emperor to secretly investigate which King Fan was the one who bought the guns and ammunition. This matter was of great importance. The Hongzhi Emperor instructed him not to tell even Zhu Houzhao before he found out the truth, so Zhengde was completely unaware of this matter.
When Miao Kui heard the Zhengde Emperor's sudden decree, he immediately galloped to the execution ground and wanted to shout, "Spare the man." Unfortunately, when he got there, he only saw the family members of the deceased carrying the coffin and collecting the body, and sending the deceased to the cemetery.
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The new Emperor Zhengde ascended the throne, and the state affairs were heavy. The three scholars were extremely busy, but they didn't forget their colleague who was locked up in the prison. However, they repeatedly begged the Emperor Zhengde to pardon Wang Qiong's crime of disrespect, but Zhengde completely ignored them.
With the care of the Six Ministries and Nine Ministers, Old Minister Wang didn't suffer at all in prison. However, with such an old minister locked up in prison for more than ten days, it was inevitable that the court officials would talk about it. They didn't dare to slander the Emperor, so they couldn't help but vent their anger on Yang Ling. When these civil officials saw Yang Ling, most of them gave him a cold shoulder, making Yang Ling very embarrassed.
In fact, Yang Ling had also helped put in a good word for Wang Qiong many times. However, Zhengde thought of that old man standing in front of him, spitting saliva all over his face, and his extremely arrogant appearance was extremely hateful. He sincerely wanted to teach him a lesson, so he didn't even allow Yang Ling to plead for leniency.
At this time, the Imperial Horse Directorate had just been ordered to return to the palace. Yang Ling and Miao Kui handed over the control of the palace, leaving five hundred personal guards to temporarily stay in the palace. The other officers and soldiers were immediately sent to Tailing to supervise the construction of the imperial mausoleum. After everything was settled, Yang Ling hurried back to the Palace of Heavenly Purity. Just as he walked to the door of the palace, he saw the two lords Wang Yan and Yang Fang coming out of the palace with gloomy faces.
When Yang Ling saw them, he hurriedly stopped and cupped his hands in greeting. When the two saw that Yang Ling ignored them, they sneered, flicked their sleeves, and left. Yang Ling knew that these ministers who had a bad opinion of him were all honest and loyal ministers. He had accidentally become a treacherous minister in their eyes, so he could only sigh helplessly. He could only shake his head and laugh bitterly as he entered the main hall.
The little emperor was muttering to himself as he read through the memorials, casually throwing the ones he had read to the side. Liu Jin stood to one side holding a horsetail whisk. When he saw Yang Ling, he couldn't help but smile slightly and raised his hand to greet him.
These days, they had become familiar with each other. Yang Ling also knew that the little emperor was extremely easy-going, so he pointed a finger at Liu Jin and made a gesture to be silent. He quietly walked to Zhengde's side.
The memorials that had been reviewed by Zhu were hanging on the table. Yang Ling saw that one of the memorials said, "If you want to give me money, then give me money. Why do you have to take it from the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors until now? If you think that the ink slab and paper are too much, give it to zhen. " Another memorials said, "This kind of small matter can be handled by local officials. If zhen also has to review it, what is the use of having you?"
Yang Ling looked at the memorials. They were densely packed with tiny regular script. Yang Ling knew that no matter who submitted the memorials, the front would be full of praises and greetings, so he could almost ignore it. He hurriedly glanced down. The general idea of the memorials was that there were people in the Baiyue region who took Annan rice and our dynasty's rice and combined it to produce a new type of rice. Compared to the original rice, the rice was more resistant to drought and insects, and the yield had increased.
Yang Ling looked at the memorials and hurriedly said, "Emperor, food is the most important thing to the people. If there is a new type of rice that can increase the yield, even if it increases by ten catties per mu, the country's farmland will increase by more than hundreds of millions. Emperor, you must not underestimate this. "
Zhengde turned his head and saw that it was him. He couldn't help but be happy and said, "You are back. Zhen was just about to send people to look for you. Zhen wanted to leave your Left Sentry Camp in the capital, but the scholars did not allow it. Liu Jin came up with a good idea. We will encircle the Imperial Plantation in the vicinity of the capital. Your men and horses will become zhen's imperial bodyguards and will be stationed in the Imperial Plantation. Hehe, this way they will have nothing to say."
Yang Ling couldn't help but be surprised when he heard this. Wouldn't he become the target of public criticism? Encircling the Imperial Plantation, the people in the Imperial Plantation would have to pay more than the ordinary people. The people were suffering unspeakably, and this crime would be placed on his head.
He glanced at Liu Jin unhappily. Liu Jin stood next to Zhengde with a complacent face. He felt that he had done a good deed for Yang Ling. He wishfully thought that Yang Ling's glance was Weiwu Bo's gratitude to him.
Yang Ling sighed and put this matter aside. He first talked about the memorial and said, "Emperor, this memorial should be given to the three scholars to discuss. Since this rice is resistant to insects and drought and can increase the yield, it is very beneficial to the people of Ming Destiny. It should be given to a place to test it. If it really has a miraculous effect, it should be widely distributed. The people will benefit from it. Who won't be grateful to the Emperor for his kindness?"
When he saw that Zhengde didn't care much about it, he couldn't help but have a bright idea. He said, "If this rice is really good, then it means that the Emperor has a discerning eye. Then this official will name it 'Zhengde rice' after the Emperor's era. Then for thousands of years, the people will remember the Emperor."
When he said this, the Emperor of Zhengde was really interested. He happily said, "Minister Yang's words are reasonable. Then let's do it this way. Let the local officials and gentry try to plant it. Each family must have at least two mu of rice. If it is good, then it will be widely distributed." He hurriedly took the memorial and wrote the official reply on it. He immediately called the little eunuch next to the door and said, "Immediately send it to the scholars for review."
This matter immediately triggered Yang Ling's thoughts. He remembered that Han Lin had brought back a few sweet potatoes at Chicken Crow Pass. The northerners all thought that it was a rare thing. It was already the fifth month, and the effects of this rice would only be known in the year after next.
He knew that sweet potatoes and other things like that would definitely be produced in large quantities. Although it was a bad thing that Liu Jin had taken over the Imperial Plantation, if he could get the Emperor to agree to let this rice be widely planted in the Imperial Plantation, then when everyone knows about its benefits, the people will actively plant it. The capital is the foundation of the world, and if the people here plant this rice, it will spread throughout the world in a few years.
The more Yang Ling thought about it, the more excited he became. Just as he was thinking about how to open his mouth, Liu Jin laughed and said, "Mr. Yang, if your army is stationed in the capital, then we can often meet in front of the Emperor. Haha, just now, Yang Fang and Wang Yan came to see the Emperor with the memorial about the flood in Xinyang. They heard that the Emperor wanted to take over the Imperial Plantation and have you stationed in the capital, so they slandered you and tried to stop it. "
Yang Ling knew that this was Liu Jin expressing goodwill. However, when he heard that there were still memorials about the flood in Xinyang, he couldn't help but be shocked. How many days had it been? The imperial court still hadn't dealt with it. If people really starved to death, wouldn't that force the people to rebel? He hurriedly asked, "How come the disaster in Xinyang still hasn't sent out relief provisions?"
Emperor Zhengde said, "Scholar Liu has already given the order to transfer money and food to help the people there, but they want a yard after an inch. They want me to exempt Xinyang from three years of food. This flood is just a temporary problem. Once the flood recedes, everything will be fine. Why should we exempt them from three years of food? Just now, I was almost fooled by their crying. Fortunately, Liu Jin reminded me, so I didn't fall for their trick. "
Yang Ling felt that this was a bit inappropriate and said, "Your Majesty, Henan is plagued with disasters. Most of the people don't have any extra food. This relief is only temporary. Moreover, after the flood, there will be plagues. Even if the people have some savings, they won't be able to withstand the torment. If we can exempt them from some food and let them have something to look forward to and recuperate, it will be a good thing for both the country and the people. "
Liu Jin couldn't keep his face straight. He said, "Mr. Yang is kind and compassionate. He takes pity on the people, but there are many officials who have harmed the imperial court and bought good land. Once this example is made, who knows how many officials will use the excuse of famine to ask the Emperor to exempt them from this and that. Then, won't the imperial court be unable to make ends meet?"
Zhengde heard this and nodded. "That's right, that's right. Liu Jin's words are reasonable. I think they're exaggerating. How can a flood cause thousands of miles of suffering? We can't condone them. "
Liu Jin continued, "The imperial court has never set a rule for inspecting local money and provisions. They also don't check carefully. Even if they have money and provisions in their treasury, they often complain to the imperial court that they are poor. Your Majesty is still young, you can't be deceived by your officials. The Old Slave suggests that Your Majesty set a rule that every year you must send people to inspect the local money and provisions. You must have a clear account in your heart so that you won't be cheated. "
Yang Ling looked at him in surprise. He didn't expect that this ignorant and incompetent Liu Jin, who only knew how to harm people, would have this kind of opinion. In the later world, communication was developed, and the system was sound. There was also an audit office that audited the local areas every year. At this time, Ming Destiny's transportation was inconvenient, and news was blocked. If they didn't strengthen the local financial management, it would indeed be disadvantageous to the imperial court.
However, if this good thing was carried out by the eunuchs, he was afraid that most of them would curry favor with the Emperor and line their own pockets. At that time, there would be a bunch of skinning Zhang and skinning Li, and the good thing would become a bad thing. Yang Ling hurriedly added, "This idea is very good. This will greatly strengthen the control of the imperial court and increase revenue. Your Majesty should have the Ministry of Revenue set a rule and have them send people to carry it out every year."
Liu Jin got his approval, and immediately his face flushed red. At this time, he didn't want to get any benefits from this, he just wanted to show off his skills in front of the Emperor. Yang Ling was the Son of Heaven's close minister, a mighty count, and had read many more poems and books than he, who could only read a few big words, did. For Yang Ling to agree with his opinion, Liu Jin suddenly felt that not only did he know how to serve people, he also had some real skills.
In a moment of happiness, he immediately said with assurance, "Your servant thought that the reason Yang Fang and Wang Yan did so much for Xinyang was because they were Xinyang officials, so they were biased towards the countryside. If the imperial court officials were like this, then the local officials are even worse. In order to prevent nepotism and relatives from accepting bribes, the local officials of the country should not hold office in their own province. For the same reason, the Imperial Censor of Water Transport cannot be held by a person from Jiangnan."
Yang Ling's eyebrows jumped, and he thought to himself, 'This Liu Jin is not a good person himself, but he is measuring the heart of a gentleman with the heart of a villain. He thinks of others in such an unbearable way. Does he think that all the officials in the world are people who cheat for personal gain?' But thinking about it again, this kind of method could, to a certain extent, prevent personal gain.
Yang Ling said, "What Eunuch Liu said is very reasonable, but most of the scholars and scholars in the world are concentrated in a few places. If all the officials of the country are not allowed to hold office in their own province, then many officials will not be easy to arrange. It would be better to stipulate that the officials of the rich provinces are not allowed to hold office in their own province to avoid suspicion. This way, there will be more room for choice."
After Zhengde ascended the throne, he could not think of any outstanding ideas to issue an imperial edict to show the new Emperor's ability. When he heard that Liu Jin had proposed these two ideas, Yang Ling expressed his approval and even added to them to improve them. He was immediately interested. He picked up his brush and carefully wrote them down, treating them as the first two new policies he would issue after taking control of the country.
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Zhengde had just become the Emperor, so he still had some serious energy, but those memorials to the throne were long and smelly, and the content was really boring. After reviewing them for a while, he got impatient and asked Liu Jin to accompany him to play with the little monkey.
Yang Ling walked out of the Palace of Heavenly Purity alone and stood in front of the Palace gate for a while. Now that the four guards of the Imperial Horse Directorate had been transferred back to the Palace, he no longer had to stay in the Palace. But when he came back just now, the Emperor did not have any intention of letting him leave, so he did not have the opportunity to speak.
Thinking about it, it had been more than a month since he led the troops into the mountains and then entered the Palace. He and Young-niang could be said to be very close, yet worlds apart. Both of them were in Beijing, and the distance was not much, but they could not see each other. He really missed her very much.
Even if he could not go back today, he should be able to go back in two days. Did that little girl miss me? He wondered if she had lost weight. Yang Ling thought of that delicate and cute little girl, and could not help but feel a burst of heat. He wanted nothing more than to immediately fly back and take that sweet and sensible little girl into his arms and be affectionate with her.
He was looking at the green vines in the courtyard in a daze when a civil official walked into the Palace. Seeing him standing in front of the Palace gate in a daze, he hesitated and came over. That person glanced at him, his orange peel-like old face filled with a humble smile. He cupped his hands in salute and said, "Is this Mighty Uncle Mr. Yang? Ah ha, it really is Mr. Yang. "
Yang Ling was stunned. He turned his head and saw that it was a somewhat familiar civil official. This person was probably in his seventies, and there was a golden pheasant embroidered on his patchwork clothes. It seemed that he was a second-rank official. Yang Ling hurriedly cupped his hands in salute and said, "This official has been rude. Sir is …"
The old man chuckled and said, "This old man is the Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, Jiao Fang."
Yang Ling hurriedly said, "So it is Jiao Daren. Is Jiao Daren … going to see the Emperor?"
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