Red Mansion Royal Cat

Chapter 567: Auspicious Day, Hundreds of Boats Race to the Drift

The turmoil in the court had little impact on the common people.

The officials who were fighting for power did not dare to vent their anger on the common people. After all, the Censor had been in a bad mood recently and was looking around with wide eyes, waiting for some unlucky guy to come forward.

Mr. Lin was promoted to the rank of Grand Tutor, and all that was left for him to ascend to the highest position among all officials was Mr. Zhou's retirement. This resulted in the carriages blocking the Lin residence lining up directly at the gate of Huanghuafang.

Lin Ruhai, who had been cautious for half his life, was too lazy to even go home. He quietly moved into the Lixiang Courtyard of the Rongguo Mansion, riding in his daughter's princess carriage every day, avoiding a lot of trouble.

A series of measures to strengthen the central government and divide local power were first applied to the provincial governments and protectorates. In less than a month, memorials opposing this matter poured into the capital from all directions.

The Emperor is in a bad state, and this has made life difficult for His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.

Liu Hong hadn't had a good rest for several days. Not only was there a table full of memorials, but there were also several piles of documents in front of the table.

As soon as Master Lin entered the palace, he couldn't help but sway his mind. With all the court officials doing this, he thought that the crown prince would be exhausted.

"Your Highness should take a good rest. Leave this memorial to me... just hand it over to the cabinet for handling."

The six ministers in the cabinet could each take a portion and finish processing them in a few days. There were so many that one person couldn't handle them all.

Liu Hong raised his head from the documents, and his bloodshot eyes scared Lin Ruhai.

Lin Ruhai's eyes suddenly became sharp, and he looked coldly at the eunuchs who were serving beside him: "What do you do for a living? If anything happens to His Highness, I will definitely chop off your heads!"

But don't think that Lin Ruhai was taking his anger out on the eunuch. The prince is the foundation of the country, and Daxia finally has a wise crown prince. The cabinet has always treated the prince like a treasure, fearing that he might get hurt. They care about him more than the emperor.

Lin Ruhai couldn't scold the prince directly, so he could only remind Liu Hong by admonishing the eunuchs.

Fortunately, Liu Hong woke up from his drowsy state and realized that he had made the same mistake as his father. He smiled awkwardly for a moment.

"Master Lin, please don't blame them. I was just being delusional. These memorials all have the same meaning. I should understand..."

To put it bluntly, all these memorials have the same meaning from beginning to end, which is to seize power from the central government and the emperor.

What value is there in responding to such a memorial?

Lin Ruhai waved at the eunuch and said, "Go ask the imperial kitchen to prepare a bowl of soup and rice for His Highness, and tell Her Highness the Crown Princess that His Highness can go back and rest after dinner."

As the Grand Tutor, it is his responsibility to teach the crown prince.

Lin Ruhai directly took over the command of the main hall of the Eastern Palace and unceremoniously ordered the eunuchs to arrange meals and decide the prince's itinerary for the day.

"Although the government is busy, it is not so busy that Your Highness should not sleep all the time. For minor matters, I and the elders in the cabinet can handle them. Your Highness should not learn from His Majesty and sleep for four hours every day..."

According to his son-in-law, if a person does not get enough sleep for four hours a day, he is wasting his life.

It is so hard to have a wise crown prince, and it would be a great sin for the ministers not to cherish him.

Lin Ruhai himself had overdrawn his life to fight against the gang in Jiangnan, so he knew too well the dangers involved.

Liu Hong saw that the Grand Tutor was really angry and his words were full of concern for him. He couldn't help but feel guilty and grateful. He smiled and said, "I was wrong. I will sleep for four hours from now on. We, the king and his subjects, still have to win this tough battle."

The conversation between the two eased the atmosphere in the hall. While Liu Hong was drinking porridge and eating, Lin Ruhai had already reviewed several memorials sent from local places.

Five of them were against the reform of local official positions in the imperial court, three of them complained about the new policies of the imperial court, and one of them even directly said that there were treacherous officials in the central government who were misleading the emperor, and it was just a matter of time before they called for a purge of the imperial court.

Lin Ruhai bluntly wrote a comment on the memorial that almost called for the removal of the emperor's side: Who is the treacherous and corrupt official? You can speak openly, there is no need to hide it. If you do not want to obey the emperor's edict, you can just resign and leave. The people's blood and sweat should not be used to support those who are greedy for power and position!
"Send it to the Censorate and ask them to investigate the prefect of Chengdu."

Lin Ruhai did not say how the investigation would be carried out specifically, but the people in the Censorate would naturally understand his intention.

The imperial edict issued by the emperor this time directly strengthened the power of the Metropolitan Censorate to the extreme, and raised the rank of the censor by four levels, from the original seventh rank to the fifth rank.

The prefect of Chengdu actually wants the court to restore the old system. Isn't that destroying the job of the censor?

Flick him! You must flick him!
Another memorial said that the emperor had given the cabinet so much power, and the prime minister had too much power. If a powerful and treacherous minister appeared, the emperor would be in danger and the country would be overthrown. The emperor was asked to be vigilant against Yi and Huo's followers...

"If I were Yihuo, I would be dead for what you said today!"

For this sentence, Lin Ruhai also added his own name at the end and stamped it with his own private seal.

Then he handed it to the clerk and said, "You don't need to send it to the cabinet. Send it directly to Hejian Prefecture by express horse. Let's see what the governor Zhu of Hejian Prefecture has to say."

Liu Hong, who was holding a bowl of porridge and putting it into his mouth spoon by spoon, came over to take a curious look and almost burst out laughing.

However, he still gave a solemn reminder: "Isn't what Master Lin said a little too much? If someone uses this to impeach Master Lin for abusing his power and threatening the imperial officials, it would be more trouble than gain."

Lin Ruhai shook his head. "If it were anyone else, I would not have replied in this way. But I know Zhu Binchen very well. He and I are both Jinshi of the same class. He is not only pedantic, but also likes to be honest and seek fame. If he was a censor with a sense of justice, it would be fine, but he has been an official for twenty years. Every time he served, he used the books of sages to make high-sounding statements, but he has no political achievements at all. Now the country is in a critical period of the new policy. What is needed is people who can do things and take on responsibilities. Those who are idle and idle should be abandoned."

In this respect, Lin Ruhai is similar to the current emperor. Those officials who can only talk high and shout slogans are not worthy of being people-friendly officials.

Zhu Bin was of similar age to him and was a fellow Jinshi.

He had served in both the central government and local government, as an imperial censor and an official in provincial governments, and had made at least considerable achievements.

Not to say that every term of office enabled local people to live and work in peace and contentment, but at least they were praised for encouraging agriculture, developing water conservancy, and educating the local people.

Now he has reached the first rank, and this fellow is still a fifth rank prefect...

According to the rules of the imperial court, one term is three years, and as long as one receives an average evaluation, one can have a chance of being promoted half a level, if not a full level.

It took this man twenty years to reach the fifth rank...what a mediocre official!

Lin Ruhai didn't think that such a person could bring any benefits to the people, let alone drastic reforms to the court.

"If Zhu Bin dares to file another memorial to impeach me, I can still look upon him with respect and transfer him to the capital to be an imperial censor. If he stops here... Your Highness, the court really does not need to spend the national treasury to support such an official."

Liu Hong understood what Lin Ruhai meant, put down his bowl and chopsticks, straightened his hat and bowed: "Thank you Master Lin for your teachings, I will learn from you!"

"I don't deserve such a great gift from Your Highness..."

Lin Ruhai stepped aside, helped Liu Hong up, and said with satisfaction: "In fact, I also learned it from your majesty. When your majesty was still a prince, he was in charge of the Ministry of Revenue. I remember very clearly that your majesty wrote to the sage many times, wanting to cut redundant officials, saying that there were too many people in the court who were eating idle meals, too many people who were just sitting around, and too many people who were boastful... I used to sneer at them, but it was not until I went to Jiangnan and served for more than ten years that I truly understood your majesty's foresight."

Compared with the old saint, it is not unfair for the current emperor to be labeled as mean and ungrateful by officials.

Who asked this gentleman, when he was still a prince, to hold the knife handle and wave it around officials' heads from time to time?

However, Lin Ruhai now truly admires him. This stubborn emperor is a daring monarch. He is even worried about how it will be recorded in history books.

"Your Majesty once said that corrupt officials are hateful, and those who are idle and idle are even more hateful. I deeply agree with you. Your Highness may as well ask Your Majesty more about what it means to be an official? What is an official for? What is an official for?"

……

Although Mr. Zhou Jiong has not officially retired, the power of the cabinet has basically been transferred to Lin Ruhai.

More and more memorials were sent to the central government from local areas, and every day there were memorials impeaching Lin Ruhai and other cabinet ministers.

However, they were all directly intercepted by the cabinet, and Lin Ruhai and others were even more rude, either keeping them without sending them out or directly sending them back.

Anyway, the current cabinet has the power to appoint and dismiss officials below the fifth rank. If he angers the cabinet bosses, they can directly ask the Censorate or the Dragon Guards to investigate him.

Among these officials, how many of them have clean bottoms?

Liu Hong's working hours were restricted by several masters in the cabinet, who were afraid that the young man would get sick from overwork.

The emperor personally sent someone to tell the child to be more diligent and learn more from the cabinet's teachers, but the six cabinet ministers jointly rebuked him.

Your Majesty has said that the prince is still a child, and that he must be taken good care of and take good care of. How to teach an apprentice is the job of us masters. Besides, our cabinet can handle these trivial matters, so Your Majesty should not get involved.

The civil officials of Daxia are much more difficult to deal with than the military generals. When the cabinet's will is unified, the emperor has to stand aside.

In this way, Liu Hong's daily work was to sleep, eat, and fight... and learn from the cabinet minister master. Unless it was a major military or national affair, he basically didn't need to care about those trivial matters.

In early April, the Crown Princess Zhang Liu was diagnosed with pregnancy by the imperial physician.

This time, the cabinet masters were even more motivated...

When Jia Cong, who was far away in Wa Island, received this news, the royal army had already completely surrounded the Tanba Domain where Kyoto was located.

On the day of the Shangsi Festival on March 3, the Qing army attacked from all sides. The two armies in the north and south began to march eastward. They were unstoppable all the way and not only wiped out a large number of Japan's manpower, but also disrupted Japan's spring planting.

Japan, which was already short of food, delayed one season of spring planting, which was a devastating disaster for the hundreds of thousands of troops and millions of civilians near Kyoto.

As the hot summer approached, the tragic incidents of cannibalism had already occurred in the Tamba, Yamato, and Ise domains.

Wang Ziteng had long been tortured by Liu Yi and Jia Cong, so he could no longer fight with his temper. Now, let alone sacrificing his life to exchange for the Wang family's future, even if he wanted to die, that would be a luxury.

"Lord Wang, look at me. If you're gone, with Wang Ren being such a jerk, how long do you think the Wang family can last?"

The letters sent from Beijing gave Wang Ziteng a headache.

Although he had discussed with the Jia family that Wang Ren would just be a rich "stud" and have children for the Wang family.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he left the capital, this guy returned to his lawless and bastard ways.

While his wife was pregnant, he actually wanted to bring the prostitute home.

If Wang Ren had not invited his niece Wang Xifeng to return to her parents' home, the Wang family would have been completely disgraced by him.

Wang Xifeng stopped her brother's absurd behavior, and guess what? Wang Ren shamelessly said that he was the young master of the Wang family, and the entire Ningyuan Marquis Mansion would belong to him in the future. How could Wang Xifeng, a sister, occupy the magpie's nest and stop him from doing things!

Wang Xifeng was so angry that she used the Jia family's ultimate move. She asked Master She to take action personally and hang Wang Ren on the gate of Ningyuan Marquis' Mansion for three days.

Just this one incident made Wang Ziteng realize that he had thought too simply.

The Jia family can take action once or twice, but Wang Ren is the only male heir of the Wang family after all, and the greater good will force the Jia family not to take action all the time.

After learning that his niece-in-law had given birth to the Wang family's eldest grandson, Marquis Wang finally saw a glimmer of hope in his eyes.

Even if he had to hold on, he would have to hold on for a few more years.

It would be best to take that bastard Wang Ren with you before you die!

Li Shiqian checked Wang Ziteng's pulse again and took care of him for more than half a year. The effect could not be said to be very significant, but he managed to save this guy's life temporarily.

"Marquis Ningyuan, my words may be harsh, but I still want to say it again. The lost blood and essence cannot be made up by a few ginseng and Polygonum multiflorum. Although your life is no longer in danger, the previous loss has already cost you your life. From now on, keep a calm mind and rest well. You can at least hold on for seven or eight years."

When Wang Ziteng heard the miracle doctor's prediction of his life, he was not disappointed. Instead, he breathed a sigh of relief.

Seven or eight years is enough!
He stood up and bowed to Li Shiqian, saying solemnly: "Thank you, Mr. Li, for saving my life. These seven or eight years are enough for me to settle everything."

Jia Cong clearly felt the change in Wang Ziteng's mentality. This most ruthless general in the army actually gave him a sense of kindness.

It’s really off the mark!

Liu Yi winked at him and whispered, "Boy Cong, why do I feel like this guy has become a different person? Could it be that a ghost has possessed him?"

"Prince Jing, I can hear you!"

Wang Ziteng glanced at Liu Yi speechlessly, and after sending Li Shiqian away, he turned to Liu Yi and said, "If the only heir of your family is like my nephew, you will become like me."

"Then let's not do that. I want to live a few more years."

My goodness, a man like Wang Ren, anyone who has an heir like him will go crazy.

Liu Yi declined the offer and quickly changed the subject. He invited the two to the map and pointed to one of the places and said, "This is the port where the Japanese and Western warships are located. I plan to destroy their ships first and cut off their only way to escape. Lord Wang, Brother Cong, what do you think?"

The Japanese now only have the Three Feudatories left, and all their escape routes on land have been cut off by the royal army. The only remaining escape route is the port of Ise Feudal Domain by the sea.

They colluded with the Western Barbarians and combined the remaining thirty-odd large ships and dozens of small boats of the Japanese with more than ten ships of the Western Barbarians to set up a series of coastal defense lines at Anozaki in Ise Domain. They wanted to take advantage of the terrain to block the attack of the Celestial Empire's navy, and also leave a way out for those princes and nobles.

Jia Cong agreed with Liu Yi's idea.

But at present, the main forces of the several naval forces of the Dynasty cannot go north for the time being, and they have to guard against the reinforcements from the Western Barbarians coming from afar.

There were only 20 warships of the Dengzhou Navy near the Japanese island, and it was difficult to break through the Japanese defense line.

"We don't have enough manpower in the navy. If we attack by force, we may not be able to take down this tough nut."

Jia Cong rubbed his brows with a headache. He didn't want too many Celestial Empire warriors to be killed or injured in this war.

He felt it was not worth sacrificing even one of them in the battle with this group of shorty guys.

Unexpectedly, Wang Ziteng stroked his beard and smiled, and said to Jia Cong: "Who said that our troops are insufficient? It's time to use the Xue family's brand..."

……

June 16, the twelfth year of Yuanyou in the Great Xia Dynasty, very auspicious.

Jia Cong was standing at the largest port in Awa Domain. Next to him was Xue Xun, the chief steward of the Xue family in Wa Island.

This young steward hurried here from Satsuma Domain with only Jia Cong's order.

"My Lord, in accordance with your instructions, I have joined forces with the Song, Wang, Chen, and Yue families to gather 127 large and small ships, all of which are armed merchant ships that can mount cannons and ram. Although they are not as good as the warships of the imperial navy, they are enough to fight those broken sampans of Japan."

None of the maritime merchants from Daxia are good people.

He looks elegant and gentle on weekdays, as if he can make money by being friendly. But when he gets ruthless, even the sharks in the sea have to stay away from him.

Although it was going out to sea for commercial purposes, it was equipped with many cannons and a ram was specially installed on the bow.

The imperial court even opened exclusive ports for these people. As long as they did not harm the people of the Celestial Empire, even if they destroyed that country overseas, the imperial court would not ask a single question.

Of course, when they were destroying a country and slaughtering a people, they were not allowed to hang the dragon flag of Daxia, nor were they allowed to say that they were from the Celestial Empire.

Jia Cong would not be so saintly as to care about the lives and deaths of foreigners overseas. He only cared about when these ships would arrive.

Just as he was about to ask, a number of masts towering into the sky appeared on the sea level.

As the ships gradually approached, Jia Cong had a clearer understanding for the first time of these wealthy merchants from the Celestial Empire who went out to sea to trade.

This group of people is fine if we talk about them individually, but if they form a coalition, how many of the small countries in the Western Yi can withstand the disaster?

"Xue Xun, tell me the truth, do you often work together to destroy nations, massacre clans, and rob money?"

Xue Xun was honest. He smiled awkwardly and whispered, "My Lord, since you are one of us, I will speak frankly. Compared to what the Western Barbarians did on the sea, they were much more cruel than us. When we go out to sea, as long as the other party is willing to do business with us honestly, I will not lose my conscience and massacre the clan and destroy the country..."

hiss!
What this guy meant was that if the other party didn't want to do business, he would use cannons to talk.

Xue Xun added, "Before the Marquis sent the order, I just received news that our fleets encountered ships from the Western Barbarians at sea. We fought against them several times, and we may have won or lost, but we managed to stop these people off the coast of the Japanese island and prevent them from causing any damage to the court."

Using merchant ships against warships, they managed to block the Western Yi fleet in the open sea.

These people are so fucking ruthless!
However, Jia Cong was very happy and couldn't help but praise: "Well done, after this battle, I will recommend you for merit. If you want anything, just tell me. As long as I can do it, I will definitely get it done for you!"

This is no joke, just because this group of people dared to confront the Western warships and prevented the Western reinforcements, they should be rewarded greatly.

Xue Xun was overjoyed and bowed, saying, "Then I will boldly ask you, Lord Marquis, to report to the court. We are willing to be the vanguard of the court and go to the West to try our luck. Please grant us an overseas enclave, build a seaport, and repair a fortress..."

Monthly ticket recommendation ticket

　Yesterday’s update was blocked, saying it was politically related.

　　I couldn't post it after I made the changes, so I had to revise part of it again and add another part, and combined the two chapters into one big chapter and update it today.

　　I will stop here for tonight. I will write about the subsequent plot tomorrow and update more parts.

　　good night!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)