Chapter 5 The fourth time Wei Shilang was shocked by the series of tricks.Mr. Feng sneaked a visit to the scholar's office

After Emperor Longqing had a stroke, he ate the decoction prescribed by the imperial physician to dispel fire and eliminate evil, and sexual intercourse was strictly prohibited. However, within ten days, his condition was significantly relieved. On this day, he even went to Xinuang Pavilion to approve a few papers.When the news came out, the two assistant ministers who stayed in the cabinet day and night and dared not leave for a moment were greatly relieved. According to the emperor's intention, they were supposed to rest in the East Nuan Pavilion.But Gao Gong insisted on the difference between inside and outside, and stated that the cabinet was also in the Forbidden City, only a stone's throw away from the Qianqing Palace, and that they should be called for if something happened, so the emperor agreed that they should return to the cabinet.Now that the emperor's condition has passed, the cabinet issued another message, starting from today, the officials of the yamen don't have to be on duty, they can go home and rest.As mentioned earlier, Gao Gongshen was the chief assistant and concurrently served as Minister of the Ministry of Officials. His daily work habit was to work in the cabinet in the morning and handle ministerial affairs in the Ministry of Officials in the afternoon.Because the emperor fell ill, he had not been to the Ministry of Officials for more than ten days. As soon as the message was issued this afternoon, he got up in a sedan chair and came to the Ministry of Officials.

Wei Xuezeng, the left servant of the Ministry of Officials, had been waiting at the door for a long time, and walked into the spacious and bright value room with high arches together.This Wei Xuezeng was a Jinshi in the 29th year of Jiajing. He was upright in character, unintentional, and daring. He once went to Fushanxi, Liaodong and other provinces.Wei Xuezeng was highly appreciated by Gao Gong in terms of temper and capable work style, so he was promoted to be his deputy to preside over the daily government affairs of the Ministry of Officials.But said that the two were sitting in the room on duty, and Wei Xuezeng briefly described the affairs of the Ministry of officials in the past ten days.Gao Gong has always been concerned about big and small matters. Although he let Wei Xuezeng handle the departmental affairs, he had to report everything to him clearly.At this moment Wei Xuezeng talked a lot, Gao Gong took the trouble to listen carefully, and when he encountered ambiguity, he would interject to clarify.After Wei Xuezeng had finished speaking, Gao Gong asked: "Is there any resignation letter from Li Yan to the ministry?"

According to the rules, officials who receive an order to become an official must submit a letter of resignation, and this type of letter must be sent to the Ministry of Officials for forwarding.Wei Xuezeng shook his head and said: "I haven't received it yet. Guangxi Qing is thousands of miles away from the capital. Presumably Li Yan's book is still on the way." Gao Gong frowned, lowered his eyelids to think for a while, and asked, "Qi Guan, you and Li Yan are of the same age, what would you think if Li Yan suddenly lost his black gauze hat as governor of Guangdong and Guangxi?"

How else would you think, one word, angry! Wei Xuezeng was straightforward, and he didn't look at people's faces when he spoke.Gao Gong was choked by him, forced a smile, and asked: Where does the anger come from because he has neglected his duty? Wei Xuezeng replied: Dereliction of duty can be fined, demoted, and changed positions. It is absolutely impossible to become an official.What's more, Li Yan is still a disciple of Yuanfu, and the punishment for the disciples is so severe, how can he restrain people's hearts?Besides, Yin Zhengmao, who replaced Li Yan, is not a good official.Now this matter has been heated up in the capital, and Wei Xuezeng wanted to continue talking, but he suddenly caught a glimpse of Gao Gong's face stretched, so he stopped talking.

In fact, Gao Gong's expression was not for Wei Xuezeng to see.It was because the yamen servant brought tea in, and when he saw the celadon teacup, he thought of the porcelain in Dongnuan Pavilion full of erotic paintings.Seeing that Wei Xuezeng had stopped talking, he asked, "Why didn't you say anything?" I was afraid that Yuanfu would not listen. What kind of words is this, Gao Gong immediately withdrew his mind and sat upright, looked at Wei Xuezeng intently and said, keep talking. Wei Xuezeng's impulsive emotions were restrained because of this break, and he lost the excitement of making a long speech. He was stunned for a moment, and only said: According to the officials, Yuan Fu replaced Li Yan with Yin Zhengmao, and it was a dangerous move. .

Gao Gong laughed and said: You simply said that it was a bad move. I didn't know you Wei Dapao, so I thought so in my heart.Wei Xuezeng was noncommittal, pretending to smile.A bright light flashed in Gao Gong's eyes, and he continued: "I'm afraid there are more public opinions outside. Inside Sangong Jiuqing, everyone knows that Zhang Juzheng has recommended Yin Zhengmao three times, but I insisted not to use it."To be fair, this person served as the governor of Jiangxi, captured and robbed the people, and collected taxes.The total amount of accumulated debts of Jiangxi Tax Bank ranks third in the country. It has only been two years since Yin Zhengmao went to Nanchang to open a mansion and build a government office.However, this man is greedy by nature, and after two years in Jiangxi, there were as many as twelve documents for his impeachment.Although some local officials were dissatisfied with Yin Zhengmao's tyrannical government and sued Yin Zhengmao with personal indignation, according to my judgment, Yin Zhengmao's misdeeds of corruption in ink were not all speculations. This is the reason why I insist on not using it.I remember that I have talked to you more than once before.

Wei Xuezeng nodded, precisely because he knew this level, so he didn't understand why Gao Gong suddenly changed his attitude.The emperor appointed Yin Zhengmao as the Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi. When Wei Xuezeng complied with the order and quickly handled the commission and customs documents, he felt that the incident was sudden and couldn't help muttering.When he heard the eunuch say that the emperor had scolded Gao Gong and I thought you were not a loyal minister, he thought that Gao Gong fell out of favor and it was Zhang Juzheng's idea to promote Yin Zhengmao.It didn't look like it later, Gao Gong still sat firmly in the position of chief assistant, and this lump in his heart could not be solved.Now it is time to ask in person to clarify this mystery, so he said: To Li Yan and Yin Zhengmao, Yuanfu's attitude is completely different, and this is where everyone is puzzled.

One moment, another moment, enlightenment, you should understand this truth.Seeing that Wei Xuezeng was stunned with a puzzled look on his face, Gao Gong went on to explain that before making this decision that day, there were two variables in the matter. report to.When the emperor was eighteen years old, he became King Yu, and I was his teacher. The relationship between the emperor and his ministers is not something ordinary people can guess.But when the emperor got angry at the golden platform of Huangji Gate that day, he actually scolded the old man for not being a loyal minister, which is called the unpredictable will of God.Later, the imperial physician stated the emperor's condition in Dongnuan Pavilion, and he hesitated, and the old man felt an ominous omen in his heart.If the emperor's age is not hesitant, and there is a change in the throne, someone will take advantage of the troubled waters and come to grab the position of chief assistant

You mean Zhang Juzheng?Wei Xuezeng interrupted and asked. If not him, who else could there be?Gao Gong drank a cup of tea in one gulp, wiped away the remaining drops from the corners of his mouth with his hand, and continued to talk, "In the thirty-seventh year of Jiajing, when I was serving as the Imperial Academy's sacrificial wine, Zhang Juzheng was promoted from the editor of the Imperial Academy to the Secretary of the Imperial Academy. My assistant, started working with me.At that time, the chief assistant was Yan Song, and we were both extremely dissatisfied with him, and we both had the ambition to be the minister who discussed Taoism, Bangxie, and yin and yang. Soon we became close friends, and we expected each other to be good friends.Later, he joined the cabinet one after another. At the beginning of his tenure as an assistant minister, he and I were still in love with each other.In many major national policies such as planning borders, managing cao, and marquis Wang Juelu, he and I cooperated with each other, cooperated tacitly, and accomplished some major events.But I have already seen that Zhang Juzheng is not a person who is willing to live under others for a long time.Ever since Chen Yiqin, Yin Shidan and others left the cabinet one after another last year, when he and I were the only ones left, his desire to seize the position has become increasingly evident.He promised me on the surface as before, but secretly he was gearing up to compete with me.The most notable manifestation is that whenever the country has the opportunity to use people, he tries his best to recommend his fellow countrymen, contemporaries and disciples. This has been done since the beginning of his entry into the cabinet, but it is not as obvious as in the past two years.The recommendation of Yin Zhengmao is precisely out of his selfish desire to cultivate cronies.

Gao Gong pulled the vines and counted the radishes to the cellar, and told a lot about the past.Wei Xuezeng listened carefully and understood the general idea. At the same time, he remembered a past event related to it: in the early spring of the second year of Longqing, at the suggestion of Gaoyi, the Minister of Rites at that time, several university scholars in the cabinet jointly sent Emperor Longqing to the court. It is a fair deal, hoping that the emperor will establish Zhu Yijun's crown prince status as soon as possible.Emperor Longqing had two sons, both born to Concubine Li Gui.Zhu Yijun was the eldest son, who was only five years old at the time. Emperor Longqing liked the eldest son very much.He remembered that one day he was riding a horse to play in the palace, when Zhu Yijun suddenly appeared on the royal road to stop the horse's head, raised his face and said to his father who was having fun, "Father, what do you do if you fall off while riding a horse alone?"Seeing that his son was so young and so sensible, Emperor Longqing disliked it, so he quickly got off his horse and hugged Zhu Yijun to comfort him.Now that he received the official document from the cabinet ministers requesting the crown prince to be canonized, he immediately approved it, and held a canonization ceremony in March to announce it to the world.At that time, the chief assistant of the cabinet was Xu Jie from Songjiang. As soon as Zhang Juzheng entered the cabinet, he caught up with this important event.However, Gao Gong, who entered the cabinet with Zhang Juzheng first, was impeached by the officials because of a falling out with Xu Jie, and was expelled from the cabinet at the end of the first year and returned to his hometown in Henan.Therefore, he can be said to have done nothing in the major event of establishing the crown prince.At that time, there were only four cabinet bachelors who joined Shushu, but now only Zhang Juzheng is left.Throughout the dynasties, when the prince ascended the throne, he would reuse the heroes who supported the prince.Gao Gong was the teacher of Emperor Longqing before he ascended the throne, so he was favored by the emperor.Now the emperor suddenly fell ill, if something unexpected happens, the ten-year-old prince Zhu Yijun will inherit the throne.Traditionally speaking, Zhu Yijun is naturally closer to Zhang Juzheng emotionally.

Although Gao Gong was a highly respected minister of the country, he lost this move after all. As the saying goes, one courtier is one courtier, which can be said to have revealed the mystery.Wei Xuezeng knew in his heart that Gao Gong had lived in the government for a long time, so of course he knew the power of it.Now he suddenly changed his mind to abandon Li Yan and promote Yin Zhengmao, which is a contingency measure at this very moment.But Gao Gong refused to tell the truth, and Wei Xuezeng was inconvenient to ask.However, he felt that Gao Gong's move was too risky, held back for a while, and couldn't help asking: Since Yuan Fu knew Zhang Juzheng's intentions, why did he push the boat along the way to facilitate this matter? Gao Gong knew that Wei Xuezeng would ask such a question, so he couldn't help smiling complacently, stood up and stretched his body calmly, then sat down again and said: I think Li Yan is also a stinky pig intestine that can't be lifted up. He has received so many soldiers, horses and food. But they can't help but a few thieves.After the Spring Festival, three mansion newspapers were written, all of which were bad news. If I don’t replace him, how will the people of the world think of me?To be honest, if Li Yan had been removed a year ago, the situation would not have been so bad.This is also a little selfishness of the old man, taking care of his disciples and delaying the military aircraft.Now the future of the emperor's illness is uncertain, if something happens, someone will make a big fuss about Li Yan's affairs, and trap the old man in a passive beating.Instead of letting others wash the hogwash pot, it is better to clean it up first.As for using Yin Zhengmao, the old man also has a thought.Zhang Juzheng recommended him over and over again, if I refused to use it, others would accuse me of blocking my talents and would not be able to serve the court.What's more, Yin Zhengmao is a person who has great disputes between the government and the opposition, and Yuan is also in the middle of whether to use it or not.I use him now, one can be the mouth of the political opponents, and the other is to see the aftermath.If he really has the ability to suppress the rebel bandits, this reputation of knowing people and doing things well, I can't do without my contribution. If he is really a silver-like wax gun, I'm sorry, I have to be polite first and then soldier, and settle new and old scores together! Gao Gong stretched out his hand and made a slashing motion, with a murderous look on his face. Wei Xuezeng understood Gao Gong's true intention of dealing with it in this way, and couldn't help admiring this scheming way of killing three birds with one stone. Five-body cast.Ginger is still old and spicy, worthy of being an old fighter in officialdom!Wei Xuezeng sighed inwardly, and took advantage of the situation to ask again: I heard that Yuanfu instructed the household department to add an extra two hundred thousand taels of silver to the military budget created by Yin Zhengmao, to make him embezzle. Is this true? This is true.Gao Gong nodded in acknowledgment. Wei Xuezeng immediately expressed his objection: this would be a bad government, and the lower officials would not agree with it.In today's world, officials all over the world have become corrupt and corrupt. Yuanfu's actions are tantamount to fueling the flames and conniving at officials all over the world to be corrupt and bend the law. Well, Wei Dapao, you have easily convicted the old man of a big crime.Arching fingers almost poked Wei Xuezeng on the bridge of the nose, laughter came out of his mouth, the room buzzed and echoed, and his long sideburns trembled like autumn grass in the wind. You, the advantage of you, is that you are capable of doing things like hatred, but you are not enough , but he refuses to go around in his mind a few more times when something happens.Just think about it, would Yin Zhengmao dare to take the two hundred thousand taels of silver? Since Yuanfu disclosed it to him, how could he not dare to take it? If you ask a good question, you should make the word public.Gao Gong was sweating profusely from his excitement. He casually lifted up the long sleeve of the official robe of the crane with the four-clawed golden dragon embroidered on it, and wiped it on his forehead. Have you ever seen any official dare to openly corrupt ink? Wei Xuezeng also wiped his forehead nervously, in fact, he never sweated slightly.He felt that there was a mystery hidden in Gao Gong's question, and he hastily replied: Throughout the ages, there has never been a chief assistant who dared to allocate two hundred thousand taels of taicang silver to make people greedy for money. Look, you're repeating what other people say again.It is true that I allocated an extra 200,000 taels of taicang silver, but it was clearly stated in the speech that it was still military expenses, and there was not a single word indicating that the 200,000 taels of silver was for Yin Zhengmao's greed. ah? Wei Xuezeng opened his eyes wide in surprise, and then regretted how he had overlooked this detail, and argued with Yuanfu for a long time without knowing it. Gao Gong went on to say: Yin Zhengmao dared to embezzle one or two taels of silver here, so I have a reason to punish him. It turns out that Yuan Fu's extra two hundred thousand taels of silver was a trap? What do you think?As a minister of the country, I Gao Gong, am I the kind of fool with a hole in the sky? But the officials privately rumored that you said it yourself, and that the extra two hundred thousand taels of silver was given to Yin Zhengmao for greed. I've said it before, it was deliberately said to Zhang Juzheng, I knew he would spread this word.However, there is no evidence for words, and words are evidence.In which official document did you see that I agreed to Yin Zhengmao's embezzlement of military pay? If Yin Zhengmao won the battle and swallowed the two hundred thousand taels of silver, how would you deal with Yuanfu? He was sent to Dali Temple to be punished for a felony.Gao Gong replied without hesitation, then his face sank, and he said uneasily, what I am worried about is not that Yin Zhengmao is greedy for ink, but that he will not be greedy for ink.You also know that he and Zhang Ju are in a bone-to-skin relationship.The bigger the problem Yin Zhengmao had, the bigger the relationship with Zhang Juzheng. The Bodhisattva on the shrine cannot be invited down. If he wants to move his seat, there is only one way, move! After listening to Gao Gong's serial plan, Wei Xuezeng was dumbfounded. He didn't expect such a simple matter to hide such a deep murderous intention, which made him have a deeper understanding of Gao Gong's cunning.Now that the words have come to this point, with his loyal feelings for the chief assistant, he can't wait to fly to Qingyuan Mansion and stuff that two hundred thousand taels of silver ticket into Yin Zhengmao's pocket, so as to become a teacher Xiang's painstaking efforts. In case Yin Zhengmao is on alert, it doesn't matter if he is not greedy for ink. Looking at Wei Xuezeng in a daze, Gao Gong said to himself, the old man still has a hand. As soon as Yin Zhengmao left, I will send a secret letter to Jiangxi Taoist censor, asking him to Step up efforts to find out Yin Zhengmao's corruption and misdeeds during his tenure in Jiangxi.In short, in the battle of Qingyuan Mansion, he Yin Zhengmao won, I was guilty and punished him, and if he lost, I was even more guilty and punished him! | Unknowingly, the two had been whispering in the duty room for half a day, the sunlight through the window had exhausted the afterglow, and the light in the duty room became hazy.It was long past the time for the dismissal of shifts, and because the two hall officials closed the door and whispered in secret, the officials did not dare to leave as soon as they responded.The yamen servant came in to make tea again, and Gu Konger, the official on duty, came in to tell the officials that they hadn't left yet, and wondered if the two officials were summoned for something.Let's all go back, Gao Gong ordered, everyone is tired these days, and they should go home and take a good night's sleep.The officer on duty resigned, and Wei Xuezeng got up to leave. Qi Guan, don't leave.Gao Gong called to stop him. Wei Xuezeng thought that Gao Gong would have a long talk, so he pulled back his foot that had already stepped over the threshold of the house, and advised: Yuanfu, you should go home too. If you haven't gone back for more than half a month, the old lady must miss you. . Gao Gong has no son, his next daughter has already been married, and he has never asked for a concubine. There is only one wife in his family who stays with him forever, and he has never enjoyed the joy of having children and grandchildren. This is Gao Gong's biggest shortcoming.My old woman, Gao Gong said teasingly, she had eaten the long fast more than ten years ago, and when I went home, it was like entering a temple, and eating meat and drinking was like breaking the rules of heaven.You will have dinner with me tonight.After finishing speaking, without waiting for Wei Xuezeng to make a statement, he shouted outside the door: Gao Fu Gao Fu is Gao Gong's chief housekeeper, he heard his master yelling, and rushed in like a gourd.Gao Gong asked him: You said last time, which restaurant serves delicious pork head meat? Back to the master, it belongs to Xunfeng Pavilion. Make arrangements ahead of you, and Master Wei and I will be there later. Gao Fu should go.After a while, Gao Gong and Wei Xuezeng changed into two sedan chairs and came towards the Xunfeng Pavilion located at Dengshikou. They withdrew their guards of honor, but just for safety reasons, they left a team of brocade guards to protect them secretly. But when it came to the Xunfeng Pavilion, Gao Fu had already arranged everything. The shop owner came out of the shop to greet them in person, and led them upstairs to an elegant room full of flowers and bright palace lanterns.After washing hands and noodles, seven bowls and eight plates of various dishes were placed on the table in an instant.In the middle is a two-foot-square lacquered wooden box filled with steaming pork heads that have just been steamed. The pieces are bright red and sliced ​​very thin. Well, it smells so good!With a high arched nose, he couldn't help swallowing a mouthful of saliva, and picked up a small piece and put it in his mouth. It was really fat but not greasy, fragrant and delicious.He asked Gao Fu to call in the owner of the shop outside Shili's door, and asked, "How do you make this pork head?" The owner of the shop replied: I would like to report to Mr. Shoufu, the pork heads in this shop are all smoked. I know it's smoked. Hunan's smoked meat is also a famous product, but the smoke is too heavy, and I don't like to eat it. The smoked pig's head in your store suits my taste. Thanks to the praise of Mr. Shoufu, if you are always willing to appreciate your face and come to taste it, the little one will not be in vain to open this shop The shop owner was flattered, and he had never seen such a prominent person before, so he babbled and couldn't express his meaning.Gao Fu saw him tearing sheep's intestines, so he shouted from the side: Don't be so wordy, just answer my master directly, what is your secret recipe for smoking pig's head meat. Yes, yes, the shop owner nodded and bowed his head and said with a smile: Actually, there is no secret recipe. This pork head meat is smoked with Poria cocos, angelica and other medicinal materials.Before smoking, marinate the fresh pig's head for three to five days, then take it out and hang it in a windy place, let it dry for ten and a half months, let it collect water and air dry, and then hang it in a smoker cage to smoke with herbs, lightly smoke, and smoke Such a pig's head will take more than a month. Gao Gong was very interested, and asked while eating: Why is it just a pig's head? Is pork okay? Pork is a little bit worse, because there are many bones on the pig's head, and there are gaps everywhere. Smoked smoke penetrates in, and then penetrates from the inside to the outside, and the fragrance of the medicinal materials penetrates completely. Well, makes sense. Gao Gong nodded in praise, while speaking, the three of them had already eaten most of the plate of pork head meat, but no one stretched out their chopsticks for other dishes.Gao Gong was excited to eat, and said to the shop owner: You remove all these dishes, and bring another plate of pork head meat, we will only eat this tonight. The shop owner obeyed the order to remove the plate and change the dishes. At this time, someone outside the door was peeping in through the crack of the door.With sharp eyes, Wei Xuezeng shouted: who? It was me, a man in his thirties who was dressed in a seventh-rank official uniform, pushed the door open and entered, knelt down in front of the table, and knocked on Yuanfu and Mr. Wei. The person who came was Han Yi, the assistant clerk in Gao Gong's cabinet. How did you come?Gao Gong asked. Han Yi presented a document and said, "This mansion newspaper was only delivered after dark. I saw that what was said in the mansion newspaper was a little urgent, so I came here to find it." Who sent the residence newspaper?Gao Gong asked. Zhang Jiayin, governor of Yingtian, heard from Anqing Mansion. Gao Gong took the mansion newspaper, read it hastily, and suddenly his face changed drastically. He handed the mansion newspaper to Wei Xuezeng, and said gloomily: Look, Zhang Juzheng has already torn his face. Drop off the sedan chair With a long yell, eight porters wearing uniforms of the same color of Zhang's residence skillfully parked the big blue woolen sedan chair in the sedan chair hall of Zhang Dashi's residence.An elderly elder was waiting at the side early, and when the sedan chair stopped, he immediately stretched out his hand to open the curtain of the sedan chair door, and called out respectfully: "My lord." Zhang Juzheng got off the sedan chair slowly, as soon as he came back, the entire Zhang family mansion would become silent.No matter in the officialdom or at home, Zhang Juzheng is famous for his unsmiling manner, sometimes for ten days and a half months, no smile can be seen on his face.Therefore, the members of the Zhang family, from the young master to the handyman, were all afraid of him. Zhang Juzheng's Dashifu is located in Shamao Hutong on Dengshikou Street.Exit from the east corner gate of the Imperial City, turn onto East Chang'an Street, and then enter Wangfujing Street, which is only a stone's throw away, and Shamao Hutong is not far from the entrance of Wangfujing Street.In February of the first year of Longqing, when Zhang Juzheng was forty-two years old, he was promoted from a bachelor of the Imperial Academy to Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of Officials and a bachelor of Wuyingdian.In a few months, he was promoted from a fifth-rank civil official to a second-rank minister.The original residence suddenly looked shabby, so I asked someone to find this new residence.It was originally the residence of a minister of the Ministry of Industry.The servant is from Suzhou and loves to manage gardens, so he made this house look like a garden in the south of the Yangtze River.The compound covers an area of ​​about ten mu, divided into front and back yards, the back yard is the residence of family members, and the front yard is a place for banquets and meeting friends.Separating the front and back courtyards is a garden of about four acres.Pavilions, terraces and pavilions, after all, are home attractions.When Zhang Juzheng was looking for a house, it happened that the servant was going back to his hometown in Suzhou when he became an official.So it was a good idea, the old servant came to rejoice that the famous garden had an owner, and on the other hand, he was also happy to curry favor with the important minister who was about to become the elder of the cabinet, so he only wanted Zhang Juzheng 20,000 taels of silver.According to the price in the capital at that time, not to mention one hundred thousand taels of silver, eighty thousand taels would definitely be a good sell.Zhang Juzheng felt very sorry for such a cheap sale, and insisted on raising the price, but the old servant wanted to do this kind of favor desperately, half pushed and half agreed, and the deal was settled.After Zhang Juzheng bought the yard, he repaired it a little according to his hobbies, and then moved here to live in it. Five years later. From the sedan chair hall to the front yard, there is another court.Although the Qingming Festival has passed, the south of the Yangtze River is already a spring scene of wicker, green cauliflower and yellow flowers.But in the city of Beijing, the branches have just broken green, and the old pagoda tree in the middle of the courtyard is only sifting out a little bit of spring.On the contrary, a spring plum blossom in the corner of the courtyard is blooming luxuriantly, and there is a faint fragrance in the courtyard.Zhang Juzheng, who has been trapped in the imperial city for more than half a month and has not returned home, is not in the mood to watch it at the moment.He crossed the courtyard with his head hooked, went straight to the backyard, took off his official uniform and hat, and changed into a navy blue and green sermon robe that he wore at home, and wore a Mingyang scarf on his head.Sitting down in the living room in the backyard, together with his wife, he accepted greetings from the four sons Jingxiu, Sixiu, Maoxiu and Jianxiu in turn.Zhang Juzheng has six sons in total, besides the above four, there are two Yunxiu, who is seven years old, and Jingxiu, who is five years old.After asking a few adult sons about their studies, they had dinner together. After the meal, Zhang Juzheng went back to the study in the front yard to drink tea. When tasting tea, he asked the book boy to call the housekeeper You Qi.After a while, a middle-aged man in his forties walked into the study. I saw that the visitor was thin and thin, with light eyebrows, small eyes, and long and narrow cheeks. There was a pea-sized cinnabar mole an inch away from the corner of the right mouth.He was wearing a Taoist robe made of blue standard cloth produced in Sanlintang, Shanghai County, a pair of shallow cloth shoes with leather gold lining on his feet, and a sky blue hall hat on his head. With a shrewd spirit, this person is You Qi. You Qi and Zhang Juzheng were from the same hometown, both were from Jiangling County, Jingzhou Prefecture. Zhang Juzheng returned to his hometown on sick leave in the 33rd year of Jiajing, and returned to Beijing three years later to resume his official position, so he brought You Qi to Beijing to be his housekeeper.Sixteen years have passed since then.You Qi and Zhang Juzheng have some distant relatives, so they should be called Zhang Juzheng's cousin, but You Qi sticks to the status of master and servant, and never calls himself a relative, but only a master.This You Qi also likes to read poetry since he was a child. He originally wanted to take part in the provincial examination to gain fame, but after joining Zhang Juzheng, he put that thought on hold.Zhang Juzheng not only liked Zhongyou Qi's elegance, but also felt that he was smart in handling things.Let him be the housekeeper, he manages all the family affairs in an orderly manner, and he is very measured in handling people and things. Sometimes he helps Zhang Juzheng with some things, and he never makes mistakes, so he is very trusted by Zhang Juzheng. At this moment, Zhang Juzheng was sitting on the bamboo couch covered with brocade silk cotton cushions, You Qi stood beside the bamboo couch with his hands down, Zhang Juzheng motioned You Qi to sit down.You Qi mopped the chair and sat down in front of the bamboo couch. Seeing some tiredness on You Qi's face, Zhang Juzheng said: I'm not at home these days, you've worked hard. It's all ordinary things, not hard work, You Qi replied respectfully, but master, you need to pay more attention to your body. What, do you see any changes? I haven't seen you for more than ten days, and the master has lost some weight. Oh yes.Zhang Juzheng smiled wryly, and asked, is there any major event at home during this period of time? Half a month ago, the old man wrote in a letter, saying that he wanted to go to Yidu to pay homage to the ancestral tomb on Qingming Festival, and explained that the expenses were insufficient.The master is not at home, so I asked my wife to ask someone to bring two hundred taels of silver to the old man. Zhang Juzheng let out a sigh, and a sense of homesickness could not help but arise spontaneously.Zhang Juzheng's ancestors can be traced back to Zhang Guanbao in the late Yuan Dynasty.Zhang Guanbao was from Fengyang, Anhui, and he was from the same town as Ming Taizu. When Ming Taizu rebelled, Zhang Guanbao also became a soldier, and later became a junior officer under the command of General Xu Da.At the beginning of the founding of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Taizu rewarded Zhang Guan for his meritorious deeds, and granted Zhang Guan a hereditary thousand households in Changning, the prefecture, and entered Huguang's military registration.The military status of the Ming Dynasty, both soldiers and officers, was hereditary.Zhang Guanbao did not leave any achievements in the annals of history, and was buried in Yidu after his death.Zhang Guanbao had a great-grandson named Zhang Cheng. Because he was the second son and could not enjoy hereditary honor, he moved from Guizhou to Jiangling. This Zhang Cheng was Zhang Juzheng's great-grandfather.When he was a child, Zhang Juzheng followed his grandfather Zhang Zhen to Yidu to visit his ancestral tombs. Forty years have passed since then, and Zhang Juzheng has never been to Yidu again.The year before last, he wrote a letter to Xu Yinfeng, magistrate of Yidu County, saying that the lonely tomb of a distant ancestor was humiliated and looked down upon.Yin Yin filial piety, can only be entrusted to the local officials to complete.Zhang Juzheng has been home for three years since his sick leave in the 33rd year of Jiajing, and he has not been back to Jiangling for 16 years, nor has he seen his parents or adults.Although there are frequent exchanges of letters, the capital is three thousand miles away from Jiangling.Guanshan is separated, family love is hard to find, not to mention serving soup and medicine, even such important events as ancestor worship, I have no time to participate.Thinking of this level, Zhang Juzheng felt dispirited, so he said: Is two hundred taels of silver too little for such a major event as ancestor worship? You Qi hesitated for a moment, and replied in a muffled voice: With the status of the master, it is a little less silver to take home, but but what?Seeing that You Qi hesitated to speak, Zhang Juzheng asked. The family's expenses are a little tight in the past two months. Zhang Juzheng didn't say a word after hearing this, there were a hundred and ten people in Zhang's house, from family members to servants, so many people were eating, drinking and spending, it was a bottomless pit.It is definitely not enough to rely on Zhang Juzheng's salary alone.Sometimes, the emperor also gave a little extra reward, but it was limited after all.Most of the income of Beijing officials depends on the filial piety of students or local officials.However, Zhang Juzheng didn't like to run a business, and his close official friends usually sent some gifts, money and miscellaneous things.If some people who want to talk about love and get promoted walk through his door, nine times out of ten they will encounter a bad nose.Zhang Juzheng traveled in the officialdom, wanting to do a great job of helping the country and benefiting the world, so he would never give any excuses in front of others.Therefore, his economy is always not well-off.In order to save money, I sometimes want to reduce servants, but it seems that none of the bearers who carry the sedan chair, the gardeners who tend the garden, the chefs who cook, the nurses who take care of the children, the schoolboys in the outer courtyard, and the maids in the inner courtyard cannot be eliminated.For an official to achieve this position, the necessary ostentation still needs to be discussed.In such a dilemma, Zhang Junormal was often stretched, so what he was most afraid of talking about was money.Fortunately, You Qi is a capable person, because of his planning, the family has never been able to make ends meet and run out of money.Sometimes, Zhang Juzheng also heard that You Qi was taking gift money from some local officials behind his back, so he would inevitably reprimand him severely, but he didn't pursue it further.After all, with such a big family, all the expenses have to be maintained by him.Moreover, without his nod and a slightly larger gift money, You Qi would never dare to make decisions on his own, Zhang Juzheng knew this well. Cost is tight, saving is.Zhang Juzheng said slowly, and then asked, is there anything else? Before You Qi could answer, another porter came in to report: Master, Xu Jue is asking to see you. Please please.Zhang Juzheng ordered.You Qi went outside with the concierge to meet the guests.After a while, You Qi led the two of them back to the study, and said excitedly: Master, Eunuch Feng saw you coming. ah!Zhang Juzheng was taken aback, and quickly got up to greet him.Because of my family's speech just now, there was only one candle in the study, and the light was dim, so I couldn't see who was coming. Now the book boy lights up the octagonal palace lantern.Under the bright light, Feng Bao was dressed in a green cloth Taoist robe and pedantic, and the daunting rigid hat on his head was also replaced by an elegant and amiable Cheng Zijin.He bowed to Zhang Juzheng, said with a deep smile: Mr. Zhang, Mr. Feng took the liberty to visit, and he still looked at Haihan. Where is it?Zhang Juzheng gave up his seat and returned the courtesy, while replying, just now the concierge only said Xu Jue, if you know you come, I should go out to greet you, it's impolite, it's impolite. Feng Baoti lifted the corner of his robe and sat down, leaning forward, and said: "Sir, you don't need to be too polite, I ordered you to do so, so as not to cause too many people to talk about it, and it is not good to spread it." Zhang Juzheng was secretly surprised, Feng Bao had never been to his house, why didn't he come here today?However, he was not in a hurry to get to the bottom of it, but started talking about wild cotton: A few days ago, I heard something about a woman from Suzhou who claimed to be the number one master of silk and bamboo in the south of the Yangtze River. Visiting, you want to compete with Eunuch Feng, is there such a thing? In terms of age, Feng Bao is four or five years older than Zhang Juzheng, but because of his unmasculine body and well-maintained body, there is no trace of wrinkle on his fair and chubby face, making him look younger than Zhang Juzheng.As for Zhang Juzheng's question, Feng Bao replied while sipping tea: That's what happened, um, it was the third day that Gao Huzi and Gao Huzi had an unpleasant quarrel in Dongnuange, what's the girl's name?He tilted his head and asked Xu Jue. Jiang Xinlian. Yes, Jiang Xinlian, Feng Baoyi smiled, that little girl walked gracefully in the autumn breeze, she looked very good.It is said that she learned the piano at the age of four, and was a close disciple of Li Hufan, the Jiangnan Qin King.If she can be invited to attend the hall meeting of princes, nobles, officials, gentry and bureaucrats, it must be a sensational event. Feng Bao really praised the woman a lot, but he kept silent on the matter of the two playing the piano, and everyone in the room was aroused by him.You Qi couldn't help interjecting and asked: Eunuch Feng, Jiang Xinlian's piano skills are so high, I don't know how you always deal with it. Feng Bao didn't answer, just admired his pair of white hands that surpassed women, and smiled.Xu Jue, who is good at adapting to the wind, stood up and spoke for his master at this time: On the day of the piano match, there were many elegant and famous people in the capital. Jiang Xinlian won a lot of praise when she appeared on the stage.At the invitation of my master, Jiang Xinlian first played a song "Moonlight Night on the Spring River". Her tender onion-like fingers only flicked, kneaded, and pulled the strings lightly, and everyone present invited everyone to sing. Just put your ears to the sky, it is really a fairy sound, Bai Juyi described the pipa girl with big pearls and small pearls falling on the jade plate, and I feel that I am not enough.When the song is over, no one will let it go.Jiang Xinlian couldn't hold back everyone's praise, so she played eight pieces in one go.Everyone still didn't let it go, these stupid celebrities forgot that Jiang Xinlian came to play piano with my master.Jiang Xinlian refused to play any more, and repeatedly saluted and squatted down to invite my master.The guzheng used by Jiang Xinlian is said to be an old thing handed down by Li Guinian, a court musician of the Tang Dynasty.The qin used by my master was made by himself.The master sits in front of the piano, burns incense and calms down, adjusts his breath and concentrates. The noisy hall just now is suddenly silent.Merry actors, dumb heads and celebrities, all of them have duck necks stretched out like goose necks, and their eyes are staring at my master. My master calmed down, then gently stretched out his hand to touch the zither, and there was a long sound, as if someone threw a stone into the 30,000 hectares of Taihu Lake in the clear and quiet night.Just at this moment, I saw Jiang Xinlian's complexion changed. After all, she is the number one silk bamboo master in the south of the Yangtze River.My master played "Autumn Moon on the Pinghu Lake". After he played this piece, everyone seemed to be magically frozen, and they couldn't speak for a long time. Jiang Xinlian did it even better, and immediately ordered the piano boy who followed him to break the beloved guzheng into pieces. , she said with shame on her face, after listening to Feng Gonggong's song, I will never play the piano again in my life.After finishing speaking, I didn't care about my master's repeated attempts to keep me, and went straight away. Xu Jue's vivid description made everyone present bewildered.Zhang Juzheng thought to himself: the emperor is seriously ill, but the eunuch who is the eunuch of Bingbi and the admiral of Dongchang has no time to play the piano, and the family hall is so big, does he not have any loyalty to the emperor?心中雖起了狐疑，但表面上卻逢場作戲大為讚歎：蔣心蓮的琴藝讓眾人狂，馮公公的琴藝讓眾人癡，何為高手，何為大師，區別就在這裡。 馮保雖骨子裡頭自命不凡，回話卻謙遜有加：先生過獎了，鼓琴如從政，都是要經歷的。平心而論，蔣心蓮琴藝高超絕倫，馮某自有不及處，但她稍微欠缺的，便是這琴藝之外的人生歷練。馮保悄悄兒引過話題，接著朝尚在興奮之中的徐爵做了一個手勢，徐爵會意，連忙捧上一隻紅木匣子。 What's this?Zhang Juzheng asked. 馮保笑道：打開看看便知。 徐爵打開紅木匣子，取出一幅裝裱精緻的立軸，游七幫忙牽開立軸。原來是用皇宮專用的極品四尺宣紙整張書寫的一張條幅。張居正站起凝視，竟不住低聲吟哦起來： 燕市重來二月初，翩翩意氣曳長裾。 金門未售甘泉賦，玄室何人問子虛。 太乙夜燃東壁火，天池時化北溟魚。 乾坤歲歲浮春色，環珮相將侍禁廬。 詩後有一行題款：敬錄太岳先生詩，馮保。保字兒下面，鈐了一陽一陰一方一圓兩枚圖章，陽文方章是魏碑體的馮保二字，陰文圖章上的兩個字卻是有著秦篆字韻的大伴。 馮保抄錄的這首詩，是張居正二十一年前寫的。那是嘉靖二十六年，他和同鄉好友初幼嘉兩個年輕舉子來北京參加三年一度的會試。他考中進士並被選拔為翰林院庶吉士，而初幼嘉卻名落孫山。兩人於京城客邸分手，張居正寫了這首詩送給初幼嘉，現在重讀這首詩，張居正不禁感慨萬端。那時年輕氣盛，初臨京城，看到錦衣玉食鮮衣怒馬的王公貴戚、文武百官，這一位來自江陵的青年士子，既為自己的窮酸而氣餒，同時又為自己的滿腹經綸而自信。詩的字裡行間，透露出他的遠大政治抱負，就是要問鼎人臣之極：環珮相將侍禁廬。 張居正吟誦完畢，心中怦然一動：這個馮保，這時候把這首詩抄來送我，是何用意？他又一次端詳這幅立軸這次不是看詩，而是看字。這幅字行草結合，腴而不滯，平中見狂，大得顏真卿《江外帖》的筆意。張居正拈鬚一笑，說道：朝野之間，盛讚馮公公琴書二藝冠絕一時，不要說兩京大內三萬內宦無人能出其右，就是朝中進士出身之人，也沒有幾個能望其項背，這幅字我將永遠珍藏。 先生如此說，馮某愧不敢當，馮保指示徐爵捲好那幅立軸裝回紅木匣中，繼續說道，其實先生的書法在鄙人之上，我見過你的幾張送給友人的條幅，至於先生的奏疏條劄我就見得更多了，可以用一句話來形容：無意為書而深得個中三昧，隨手寫來盡得風流。我當了十六年秉筆太監，嚴嵩、徐階、高拱幾位首輔的字都見過，卻沒有一個比得上先生。說起書法，馮某怎敢在先生面前班門弄斧，我欣賞的是先生的這首詩。 馮保說話時，徐爵與游七都知趣地離開書房到外頭客廳裡拉扯閒話去了。書房裡只剩下張居正與馮保，張居正把書僮送上來的一盤南豐貢品無籽蜜橘剝了一個遞給馮保，自己也剝了一個來吃，一邊吃一邊說道：馮公公抄錄的這首詩，原也不值一提，那是僕年輕時張狂不諳世事，謅出的幾句妄語。 馮保回道：先生真會說笑話，李清照說生當作人傑，死亦為鬼雄，那才是妄語。她一個女流之輩，只不過能寫幾句詩，有何資格談人傑與鬼雄？先生則不然，你現在已位居次輔，離人臣之極只差一步，只要稍作努力，就能當上一個千古宰相。 千古宰相？張居正情不自禁重複了一句，內心一陣激動，他自小的志向就是要當伊尹呂望一類人物，操廟算之權行強國富民之術，馮公公，你認為在下有這種可能？ 不是可能，只要你願意，這首輔之位，猶如探囊取物。馮保口氣懇切不容置疑。 張居正腦海裡驀然想起那日東暖閣中馮保與高拱吵架時說的那句話，是你滾還是我滾，現在尚難預料。此中已透露出馮保的驅逐高拱之心。探囊取物談何容易，為了探得馮保的全部底細，張居正故意低調說話：馮公公是不是過於樂觀了些，須知高閣老是皇上第一寵臣。 這一點不假，但凡事都有變數，如今這變數在即。馮保說到這裡，探頭看了看虛掩著的書房門扇，壓低聲音說，張先生，皇上得的是絕症。 絕症？不會吧，皇上今天不是已經開始在東暖閣批摺子嗎？ 這也不假，馮保冷笑一聲，眼神越發難以捉摸，太醫說過，皇上的病，第一要禁的是房事，但今夜裡，皇上又命孟沖把簾子胡同裡的那個孌童，喬裝打扮偷偷摸摸領進了大內。 張居正大驚失色：竟會有這等事？ 事情不僅於此，李貴妃也知道了這件事，她頓時盛怒，一跺腳要衝進乾清宮，從萬歲爺的龍床上拉下那個賣屁股的東西，一刀割了他的腦袋。 and after? 是我攔住了她，我勸她忍得一時之氣，免得百日之憂，太子遲早是要接位的，到那時候，貴妃娘娘有什麼話不能說，又有什麼事做不成呢。 張居正已經知道徐爵誑胡自皋三萬兩銀子買那串菩提達摩佛珠孝敬李貴妃的事，看來這位大內老臣已完全取得李貴妃的信任。他頓時心中生出隱憂：皇上的生命，是不是也在他的掌握之中？因此問道：聽你這麼說來，皇上病情還會有反覆？ 不是反覆，說得刻薄一點，皇上如今是走在黃泉路上的風流皇帝。 張居正心中一格登：他認識到問題的嚴重性，同時也看到了千載難逢的機會 馮保關注張居正臉上神色的變化，繼續搖動三寸如簧之舌，煽風點火道：還有一件事，我說出來，恐怕張先生會生氣。 What's the matter? 今日在東暖閣，我看到高鬍子給皇上的密摺，他舉薦高儀入閣。這個時候增加一個閣臣，明擺著是為了擠兌你。 張居正點點頭：這事我前兩天就有耳聞。高儀與高拱同是嘉靖二十年的進士，已當了五年禮部尚書，資歷名望都夠了。高儀生性淡泊，未必肯為虎作倀，與高拱沅瀣一氣。 可是，據我所知，高拱與高儀平日裡交情甚好，又都是同姓，不可不防。 張居正瞟了馮保一眼，沒有吭聲。馮保接著又壓低聲音說道：先生不要忘了，當今太子可是高儀提議冊立的啊。現在滿朝文武，只有你和高儀是擁立太子的大功臣。高拱這隻老狐狸，早不提，晚不提，偏偏在這時候把高儀補進內閣，其用意不是很明顯嗎？ 張居正是個慎思篤行的人，對高拱此舉的用意當然十分清楚。但他仍不想第一次與馮保談話就過分坦露心跡，因此只淡然一笑，說道：我說過，高儀為人正派，加之身體又不好，他就是進了內閣，也不可能有什麼越格的舉動。 高儀如何是高儀的事，高鬍子如此做，卻完全是為了制約你。如果這件事還不足以引起張先生警惕，那麼高拱突然一改初衷，十萬火急起用殷正茂，又是何居心呢？ 馮保工於心計，不但看出內閣兩位輔臣間的矛盾，而且蛛絲馬跡萍末之風都瞭然於胸。至此，張居正也覺得再沒有什麼好隱瞞的了。他思量一番沉吟答道：高閣老任用殷正茂是醉翁之意不在酒，想讓我栽個大跟頭，只要殷正茂那頭一出事，他就有理由把我趕出內閣，這一招固然毒辣，但尚欠火候。 先生既已看出個中蹊蹺，馮某也就放心了。 至此，兩人心思已經融合一處，當下又說了許多朝廷宮闈秘事，並討論大政方略，在此按下不表。