Chapter 900 Seek kindness and gain kindness
Men are proud of their passion and responsibility. They are the so-called upright men. When they stand upright, they can hold up a piece of sky for their wives and children. When they leave home, they can hold up a piece of sky for this country and this nation.
It's for men.
Countless poems praise those passionate men and those responsible men.
When children are young and ignorant, they grow up listening to the stories of these real men. When they grow up, most of them are tortured by life and throw all those ideals into the trash.
But the powerful and wealthy are different. The education they received since childhood was not how to be a real man and do something for the country and the nation.
What the rich and powerful have been taught since childhood is how to make profits for themselves and their families, how to socialize in the rich and powerful circle, how to communicate with others, and how to seize power...
They have everything, but no one tells them: Hey, boy, grow up to be a responsible man.
Even if someone says this, the responsibility they are talking about is only for the family.
Family is the root of power and nobility.
For the sake of the family, one can do anything, even sacrifice oneself.
Therefore, for the sake of the family, interests should be maximized.
If someone cuts the flesh of our family, we should fight him to the death.
That's what a reckless man does.
“They’re all stupid.”
The old man stood outside the hall, listening to the quarrels of the powerful inside. One was reluctant to give up his land and people, and another said that Jiang Qingzhi would not dare to commit murder, but no one came up with a good idea.
The owner of the mansion came out. This person was like a socialite in the circle of the rich and powerful. He made contacts everywhere and coordinated in the middle. Although his family was not powerful enough, he had a good reputation in the circle, similar to that of Little Mengchang, because of his ability to dance with long sleeves. "Mr. Chen, most people say that he is a socialite."
"Whether it is handed over or not is actually not important." The old man said, "What is important is the emperor's favor. If the emperor's favor is there, then everything can be saved. Don't forget that our ancestors also climbed up from the bottom. Today's family business was accumulated bit by bit. As long as the emperor's favor is there, sooner or later we will be able to gather a huge family business again."
The noble smiled bitterly, "Mr. Chen, His Majesty is stubborn. When he ascended the throne, he couldn't wait to launch reforms. Fortunately, he was suppressed by Yang Tinghe and others, otherwise our good days would have been over. Now he is launching a new policy again. This time there is no Yang Tinghe in the court, but there is one Yan Song. What can we do?"
Mr. Chen shook his head, "Your Majesty is stubborn, but don't forget, Your Majesty's age..."
The nobleman's eyes narrowed, "Yes, Your Majesty is not young anymore."
Mr. Chen said calmly: "Your Majesty is stubborn, and a tough emperor is always accompanied by thunder and rain. But thunder and rain cannot last long, and the rain will stop...
His Majesty's new policy has angered the people of the world. He has such prestige that he can barely maintain the situation, but what about the new emperor? Does he have such prestige?
Don't forget how powerful Shang Yang was back then. When the old king dies and the new king ascends the throne, everything will return to normal. The powerful... that is, people like us are the foundation of the emperor."
Mr. Chen sighed, "Everyone needs a backer, including the emperor. A lone man cannot achieve anything, so what is the emperor's backer? It's us. Without us, who would the emperor rely on? The civil servants?
The emperor and the civil officials have been fighting for thousands of years, fighting for power with red eyes and using every possible means. But we are in a superior position, and whichever side we lean towards will have the upper hand. "
The nobleman was thoughtful, "Mr. Chen's words are really eye-opening!"
Chen Gong smiled, "Back then, Emperor Taizu Gao killed meritorious officials for the sake of his children and grandchildren, and the founding dignitaries were purged one by one. It seemed like a good thing. Then Emperor Chengzu pacified the rebellion, and Emperor Jianwen looked at the civil and military officials in the court, but found that no one was capable of taking on the responsibility. Looking at the dignitaries, the dignitaries were either purged by Emperor Taizu Gao, or the rest were mostly dissatisfied with the emperor. Who would be willing to work for him? Do you understand?"
The dignitaries were convinced and said, "Mr. Chen, this is good advice. After Emperor Taizu Gao, our generation rose again until today."
"There has never been an unstoppable noble in the world, it's just the rise and fall of the old and the new. Tell them to be patient." Mr. Chen sighed: "Our opponent is not Shang Yang, not Wang Anshi, but the more cunning Jiang Qingzhi."
The noble nodded, "What people fear most about Jiang Qingzhi is not his cunning, but his prestige in the army."
"He is the only famous general in the Ming Dynasty. If the Ming Dynasty was safe and sound and had no rivals, then such a person would be dispensable. Altan Khan is still alive and is gathering strength and recovering his vitality. This is a threat to the Ming Dynasty... To deal with this threat, we need people like Jiang Qingzhi to command the army. This is why Your Majesty is so confident."
"Military support!"
"Yes! Jiang Qingzhi is in charge of the new policy. Your Majesty uses his prestige in the army to counterbalance the officials, you and me. Do you understand?"
The dignitary nodded, "Jiang Qingzhi is in charge of the capital, and the Beijing guards respect him like a god. If we make trouble, with Jiang Qingzhi's ruthlessness, he only needs to give an order and the Beijing guards will be dispatched..."
"We will all turn into dust, the dust of the new policy!" Chen Gong sighed, "Those civil servants and scholars will celebrate, thinking that Your Majesty is destroying the Great Wall. A new emperor has new ministers. If we fall, the new ones will stand up, take our place, and become the emperor's supporters. Do you know what this is?"
The dignitary hissed, "It's a purge."
Mr. Chen nodded. "I've always heard the laughter of newlyweds. Our families control a huge amount of money, grain, land, and population. If the power we control through marriage is revealed, it will make the emperor feel uneasy.
Your Majesty, do you know this? The Jinyiwei and the Dongchang have spies all over the capital, how could he not know this? He was just being cautious in the past. If he can completely get rid of us today by taking advantage of the new policy, who will get the power left? Who will get the benefits?"
The noble lowered his head and groaned, "Your Majesty can promote a group of new people, use these benefits as rewards, let these people shout and fight for you and the new policy... Then reward them according to their merits, and a new group of nobles will be born."
"They will take over from us and become the emperor's support and backers. Do you understand? Compared to us, these newcomers are loyal to His Majesty and have similar interests...
Remember, the foundation of our family has never been loyalty, nor for the Ming Dynasty... but for profit!"
"When our interests are in line with the emperor's, we are his loyal supporters. When our interests conflict, we..."
"Yes!" Mr. Chen smiled. "Now that His Majesty is determined to launch a new policy and wants to cut our flesh, this is a conflict of interest. At this time, should we protect our family or rise up in resistance?"
"If there is something that can be done, then resist. But now the Beijing Guards are in Jiang Qingzhi's hands. I bet that Jiang Qingzhi is forcing us step by step in the hope that we can make a fuss..." "Yes, the bigger the fuss, the better. It's best to give him an excuse to take action."
"Hiss!" The nobleman took a breath of cold air, "He has dug a big hole, waiting for us to jump in!"
"The sword and the gun are the key. In the past, we had people in various guards, but now the strength of the rebuilt Beijing Guards has expanded... To be honest, who could have guessed that Jiang Qingzhi could lead the Beijing Guards to defeat Altan Khan's army? He would be a famous general who could stop Altan Khan. But he not only stopped Altan Khan, but also defeated him. Now that the Beijing Guards are in our hands, who dares to move?"
"Our forces in the local guards...are nothing compared to the Beijing guards."
"Yes, the presence of the Jingwei is like a sword hanging over our heads. No one knows when this sword will fall and kill us. Okay."
Mr. Chen turned around and looked at the people who were still arguing inside, and said, "What Du He said is right. If we continue to quarrel, we will all become paupers."
The powerful went in, "Jiang Qingzhi is waiting for us to make trouble, who can stop the attack of the Beijing Guards?"
"We have more people."
"A lot of people? Don't forget, among those who support the new policy, many are speculating. There must be benefits to speculation! Where do the benefits come from? We have taken all the benefits.
We have fallen, so new people can take over. Don't you understand? Du He's words are good advice. If we continue to make trouble, we will either die or fall into disgrace. Whoever wants to make trouble should do it by themselves, and don't drag everyone down. "
The nobles were quiet for a moment. The noble who had threatened to cause trouble sneered, "You guys don't dare to make a move, so I'll do it."
"Haha!" The master smiled, "You decide how to do it yourself. Don't make us tired."
"A bunch of cowards." The noble said sarcastically, "Our ancestors once saved Emperor Chengzu during the Jingnan Campaign. We have the Iron Scroll in our hands. You guys..."
Everyone was silent.
"Just watch!"
The noble strode out, and then he was heard shouting, "Follow me, to the West Garden, to see His Majesty!"
Everyone sat down and Mr. Chen came in.
"Mr. Chen, what do you think will happen to him?"
Mr. Chen sat down and was given a cup of hot tea. He took it and sniffed the tea. "If it were your Majesty, you would probably scold him."
"In other words, there will be no problem in going this way?" Someone looked happy.
"Who is in charge of the new policy?" Mr. Chen said coldly, "It's Jiang Qingzhi!"
"But he has an iron scroll!"
"Iron Scroll..." Mr. Chen fell silent.
Everyone is waiting for news.
He wanted to find an opportunity to turn the situation around from the responses of Emperor Jiajing and Jiang Qingzhi.
Mr. Chen looked at the people and knew that none of them wanted to give up their land and people.
That is their foundation and the guarantee of wealth and prosperity for generations.
If you say you can do business, there will be gains and losses. If you make money, that’s easy to deal with, but what about losses?
Family inheritance is planned for hundreds of years. Business is only the icing on the cake. Farmland has a fixed output every year, which is the most important resource for family inheritance.
After an unknown amount of time, the sound of hurried footsteps was heard.
Everyone stood up suddenly, and saw the noble attendant who went to see Emperor Jiajing rushing in.
Kneel down.
"Please save my Lord!"
Mr. Chen's eyes narrowed, "What happened to him?"
"Jiang Qingzhi has detained my Lord Marquis, and then the Eastern Depot has been dispatched to search the Marquis's mansion. The Marquis's mansion...can't withstand a search!"
"go!"
"Go home, go home!"
"Hand in the account books now!"
In an instant, only the host and his astonished followers were left in the hall.
(End of this chapter)
