Chapter 253 The Soul Cannot Be Sold
In the morning, Emperor Jiajing placed the last memorial on the table and stood up to stretch his body. Huang Jin collected the memorials and prepared to send them to Zhilu.
"Ask Yan Song, is it easy for the Ming Dynasty to manipulate the trade with Altan Khan from open to covert?"
"Yes!"
Emperor Jiajing walked outside the hall and slowly performed a set of punches.
It is called boxing, but if Jiang Qingzhi saw it, he would definitely say it is a health-preserving exercise.
There is no strong wind, just a soothing and generous feeling.
When Huang Jin arrived at Zhilu, Yan Song looked in good spirits... just before, he had just taken a nap.
"Eunuch Huang."
"Prime Minister."
Huang Jin put the memorial on the table, and Yan Song waited for him to speak with a smile.
The memorial first passed through the lower level, which was the business of Zhao Wenhua and others. Then it was sent to Yan Song, who drafted it, that is, gave preliminary opinions on the disposal, and finally sent it to Emperor Jiajing for judgment.
If the Emperor Jiajing was satisfied, he would send it back without changing a word. If he was not satisfied... the more he was dissatisfied with, the more dissatisfied he was with Yan Song.
Then Yan Song should prepare to leave.
Therefore, the result of a draft can give us a glimpse into the relationship between the monarch and his subjects.
"Your Majesty asked, the trade with Altan Khan has changed from open to covert, can we manipulate it?"
Yan Song was a little nervous when he saw him speak, but when he heard this, he felt relieved and said, "This is easy to do. However, it will still be embarrassing."
The open and aboveboard trade, or what Altan Khan called tribute, actually turned into smuggling, which was somewhat embarrassing for the Ming Dynasty's emperors and ministers who were very concerned about their reputation.
Huang Jin nodded and went back.
Halfway through the journey he met an imperial physician.
"I have met Eunuch Huang."
"Who's feeling unwell?" Huang Jin asked.
"The prince woke up again in the middle of the night and had trouble falling asleep after waking up."
Huang Jin reported the matter after returning.
"The prince woke up in the middle of the night and couldn't get back to sleep."
Emperor Jiajing covered his forehead and asked, "How long has it been?"
Huang Jin said: "The imperial physician said it has been a while."
Emperor Jiajing turned around and went into the side hall where he kept his books.
"Your Majesty, it's time to rest." Huang Jin advised.
Emperor Jiajing waved his hand and said, "Bring me a cup of tea, strong tea."
Jiang Qingzhi had breakfast and slowly went into the palace to report.
"Uncle, your cat...won't leave again?" The guard at the gate of West Garden couldn't help but smile bitterly when he saw Duoduo on Jiang Qingzhi's shoulder.
"There's nothing I can do." Jiang Qingzhi was also helpless, and touched Duoduo's head, "You've been squatting on my shoulder for half an hour, grabbing my clothes and refusing to let go."
When a eunuch came to greet him, Jiang Qingzhi asked casually, "How was your Majesty last night?"
If someone else asked, they would be suspected of spying on the emperor, but Jiang Qingzhi was different. The eunuch smiled and said, "Your Majesty is in high spirits."
Jiang Qingzhi looked at the sky. It was not yet noon, so he felt that he had arrived too early.
"Your Majesty is looking for a book." Huang Jin nodded at Jiang Qingzhi outside the side hall.
"What book?" Jiang Qingzhi took a few steps forward.
There were several rows of bookshelves in the hall. Emperor Jiajing was sitting on the floor, surrounded by books.
He held the book in his left hand and turned the pages with his right hand, his brows furrowed as if he had encountered some difficulty.
Most of the light in the room was blocked by Jiang Qingzhi, and Emperor Jiajing waved his hand casually.
Jiang Qingzhi walked in, "Your Majesty."
According to Emperor Jiajing's daily schedule, he should have been dreaming about Zhou Gong by now.
What difficulty did you encounter?
Emperor Jiajing raised his head and heard a friction sound from his neck. He turned his neck with difficulty and said, "Qingzhi!"
Jiang Qingzhi squatted down, picked up a book and started flipping through it. It was a medical book.
"Your Majesty, are you feeling unwell?" Jiang Qingzhi thought to himself, I must not give the Taoist master to Butterfly.
Emperor Jiajing's eyes were slightly warm, "I am fine."
Jiang Qingzhi felt relieved and sat down.
"I am sorry for the inconvenience."
"Please sit down!" Emperor Jiajing took a sip of tea. "Have you eaten?"
"have eaten."
"Your bacon is good, and goes well with rice, but it's a bit oily." Emperor Jiajing put down the book and rubbed his eyes. "Huang Jin, ask them to get some bacon and a pancake."
"Yes." Huang Jinfei also went there.
"The prince always wakes up in the middle of the night recently and has trouble falling asleep again. This is what young people fear the most, it exhausts their heart and blood." Emperor Jiajing's eyes were filled with worry.
"Have you found a way?" Jiang Qingzhi felt that even if the Taoist priest did not become an emperor, he could still support himself with his fortune-telling and medical skills.
Emperor Jiajing shook his head, "Most of those medicines are not good. The prince is young... it would be best if he doesn't need to take medicine."
The bacon and pancakes were delivered.
Jiang Qingzhi suggested: "Why don't you try wrapping the bacon in the pancake."
Emperor Jiajing readily followed suit, and after rolling it up, he took a bite and his mouth was filled with salty and fresh flavor.
It turns out that he can eat!
After breakfast, Emperor Jiajing asked, "Someone said yesterday that the great Ming Dynasty was secretly doing business with the Altan tribe, which was shameful. But since I have promised you to take charge of this matter, I will naturally not reject it."
The matter is up to you, but why did you make such a decision?
Jiang Qingzhi said: "I am not worried about trade. After all, the goods of Ming Dynasty are more abundant. I have countless ways to make Altan suffer a great loss."
Jiang Qingzhi is absolutely confident about this.
"But I am worried about one thing."
"Speak." Emperor Jiajing picked up the towel and wiped his hands.
"I am worried that once we open up trade with the Altan tribe, those merchants will sell more than just goods."
Emperor Jiajing was stunned. "What else can they sell?"
Jiang Qingzhi took out his medicine cigarette and said calmly, "News, ironware... they sold whatever was not allowed to be sold. Including leading the way for Altan's tribe."
Emperor Jiajing frowned with three vertical lines, "Ironware and other things are forbidden. Selling information? That means you are a spy. Lead the way..."
Emperor Jiajing looked at his cousin. "How dare those merchants?"
"As long as there is enough profit, they dare to sell the rope to hang themselves. Your Majesty, do not overestimate them."
Jiang Qingzhi thought of the group of businessmen decades later who sold everything they could to Man Qing, including their souls.
Emperor Jiajing pondered.
After a long while, he said, "So you want to cut off the open way and take the secret trade route. If you find someone daring to sell what they shouldn't sell..." "Kill without mercy, execute immediately!" Jiang Qingzhi showed a ferocious look at this moment. "Exile the whole family. I know that this will not deter those obsessed merchants. But let the world know that people can sell anything, here..."
Jiang Qingzhi pointed to his heart and said, "We can't sell it here."
Emperor Jiajing looked at him, as if trying to determine whether his words were true or false.
Jiang Qingzhi looked at him calmly.
"Huang Jin!"
"The servant is here."
Emperor Jiajing ordered: "Tell Yan Song to order the nine border guards to keep an eye on those merchants."
"Yes."
Emperor Jiajing stood up and said, "I am going to go see the Crown Prince. Qingzhi...you should go too."
What am I going to do?
Jiang Qingzhi remembered that the prince seemed to have gone there this year.
But the cause of death is unknown.
……
The prince felt a little tired in the morning and asked for leave after just one class.
He returned to his bedroom and lay on the bed, but he couldn't fall asleep.
Qin Li invited the imperial physician to come. When the imperial physician came in, he could only smile bitterly, "Your Highness still can't sleep?"
The prince nodded and said tiredly: "I feel so tired that I want to die, but I can't sleep."
The imperial physician said, "In that case, add three more drops of the medicine."
"No need."
"Who is it?" the imperial physician asked dissatisfiedly. He turned around and saw that it was Emperor Jiajing and Jiang Qingzhi, and he hurriedly saluted.
"Father!" The prince rolled out of bed.
It's not panic, but extreme surprise.
For many years, ever since the verdict that the two dragons should not meet, Emperor Jiajing has never come here again.
"Father!" The prince knelt down, sobbing silently.
Emperor Jiajing waved his hand and the imperial physician left.
"You fool." Emperor Jiajing stroked the crown prince's head and said with emotion, "You have grown so big in the blink of an eye, yet you have caused your old father to worry."
"My son is unfilial." The prince raised his head with admiring eyes.
"Sit tight." Emperor Jiajing personally felt the prince's pulse and asked some other questions.
"Get some stools for my uncle." The prince even had time to greet Jiang Qingzhi.
"No need." Jiang Qingzhi preferred to stand.
"You two shut up!" shouted Emperor Jiajing, who was taking the patient's pulse.
Jiang Qingzhi and the prince looked at each other.
After a diagnosis, Emperor Jiajing felt a little headache, "You..."
Jiang Qingzhi picked up a book beside him, which turned out to be a travelogue with annotations on it.
——Although I cannot reach it, my heart yearns for it.
His heart moved slightly.
"Your Majesty, could you let me try?"
Emperor Jiajing looked at him suspiciously. The imperial physician outside the door poked his head out and said, "Your Majesty, medicine is poisonous to some extent. You must not try it recklessly. Lord Chang Wei, I am sorry... Each profession has its own specialty. You have never learned medical skills. If you rashly treat Your Highness, it may not be done properly..."
If anything happens to the prince, who will be held responsible?
Jiang Qingzhi said: "I have also read medical books."
The imperial physician said: "I have seen self-taught people, but most of them killed themselves by prescribing medicine after learning it themselves."
"I also taught myself the art of war." Jiang Qingzhi looked at the imperial physician.
"Uh!"
Jiang Qingzhi defeated Altan Khan's tribe twice and was known as a famous general.
I can teach myself the art of war, so what’s the use of medical skills?
Emperor Jiajing nodded, "I will watch."
With the Taoist priest in charge, the imperial physician felt relieved.
"You..." Jiang Qingzhi coughed dryly, "How about you go out for a while?"
Emperor Jiajing snorted, "Why? Your medical skills are so amazing that they shock heaven and earth and make ghosts weep. Are you afraid that I will learn them secretly?"
Jiang Qingzhi laughed dryly and said, "I'm not afraid that you will learn secretly, but I'm worried that the prince will be uncomfortable."
Ok?
Emperor Jiajing glanced at the prince, then stood up and left.
Tsk!
The imperial physician thought to himself, aren't you trusting Chief Wilbur too much?
He is not afraid that the prince will get into any trouble because of him.
Jiang Qingzhi looked at the few eunuchs who were left behind, as well as the prince's foster brother Huang Wei.
"Do I have to go out too?" Huang Wei and the prince were very close and felt that he should supervise from the side.
Jiang Qingzhi felt that this man was tactless. The prince sensed his uncle's impatience and waved his hand.
After everyone left, the prince smiled and said, "Recently, I have often been unable to sleep all night, and I have been studying and working as usual during the day. I am miserable and exhausted. Does my cousin have any solution?"
He felt that Jiang Qingzhi wanted to show his favor to him through this matter, so his attitude was inevitably a bit arrogant.
There was even some reserve in his eyes.
Jiang Qingzhi thought of the princes in history who died almost suddenly.
What causes this?
Should we take action?
The prince had a good relationship with the literati, and his existence was a threat to Jiang Qingzhi.
Jiang Qingzhi looked at the prince with complicated eyes.
Suddenly laughed.
You still have a long life ahead of you. After more than ten years, if I, Jiang Qingzhi, still cannot compete with those scholars and officials, then my death will be worthy!
In this way, we should act according to our true heart.
The prince looked at Jiang Qingzhi and thought to himself, is his uncle pretending to be so serious just to show his favor to him?
Jiang Qingzhi saw his reserve and said calmly, "What are you afraid of?"
The prince was stunned. "I have never been afraid of anything. What does your cousin mean by that?"
"You are afraid of those two brothers." Jiang Qingzhi looked at the prince with his hands behind his back, "You are afraid of His Majesty."
The prince's body shook.
"The longer the emperor lives, the greater the possibility that the prince will be deposed. Who is instilling these ideas in you?"
Jiang Qingzhi almost shouted at the last sentence.
There was deathly silence in the bedroom.
(End of this chapter)
