Chapter 290 289 Jiangnan will be in chaos

"Hua Hua Hua"

The sound of a large ship cutting through the water was heard, and on the Yangtze River, a large ship was moving rapidly down the river.

The Jiujiang Mansion behind him gradually receded into the distance, and Wei Guangde stood at the stern of the boat, silently looking in the direction of his home.

This was the third day after he and Xu Jianglan got married, and according to the rules, he had to send Xu Jianglan home.

It was already the twelfth lunar month and the New Year was approaching. The Yangtze River was no longer as prosperous as it had been in the past. There were not many ships coming and going. The wind was biting and cold on the river. Not long after, Wei Guangde felt his hands and feet were cold.

At this moment, he felt footsteps behind him. Before he could turn around to see who it was, he smelled a refreshing fragrance and a cloak was draped around his shoulders.

"It's windy outside, you should stay in the cabin."

When Wei Guangde was speaking, he turned around and looked at the wonderful person behind him, who was his newly married wife Xu Jianglan. After hearing Wei Guangde's words, he just pursed his lips and smiled.

Although she is only seventeen years old, she is tall and plump. After getting in touch with her, Wei Guangde found that she was elegant in words and deeds.

When talking to her, Xu Jianglan's beautiful eyes were looking forward to it, and her every frown and smile showed an indescribable charm, just like a peony in bud, beautiful but not delicate, gorgeous but not vulgar, charming and charming, incomparable.

At this time, she is wearing a pink palace dress, with a plain satin belt around her waist that can hold a full hand, which highlights her graceful figure. Her black hair is as high as lacquer and her hair is tied up in a bun with flying stars chasing the moon. She has not applied too much makeup. Her eyebrows are furrowed, her eyes are delicate, and her skin is beautiful.

Like jade, curling and graceful.

Just being blown by the river wind, Xu Jianglan's pretty face turned slightly white at this moment.

Wei Guangde didn't want to stay here anymore, so he put his hand on her shoulders and returned to the warm cabin with her.

At this time, Hu Zongxian's report on the capture of pirate leader Wang Zhi had also been sent to the capital. It instantly caused a small sensation in the General Affairs Department, and soon spread to other yamen outside.

Naturally, the general affairs envoy did not dare to neglect. After copying and filing the copy, he hurriedly sent Hu Zongxian's victory document to the cabinet in person. Although it was already ice and snow outside the house at this time, walking was extremely difficult, but the general administration envoy still braved the situation with a nimble pace.

Running quickly towards the East Pavilion in the heavy snow.

Since the 31st year of Jiajing reign, the name Wang Zhi has been widely spread in the Ming Dynasty. It can be said that almost everyone who is an official knows Wang Zhi.

Because starting from this year, Wang Zhi successively sent pirate leaders such as Xu Hai, Chen Dong, Xiao Xian, and Ye Ma to guide Japanese pirates to invade and plunder eastern Zhejiang, western Zhejiang, Jiangnan, Jiangbei, Fujian and other places.

It can be said that the current Japanese rebellion in Jiangnan was caused by this person.

What is even more frightening is that after the Japanese pirates repeatedly plundered in the south of the Yangtze River, their targets have now expanded from south to north. They have appeared many times, invading South Zhili, Shandong and other places, causing countless killings.

Okay, now the culprit has finally been caught by the police. Naturally, he cannot be let go lightly. This person is really guilty of serious crimes.

Today, after Hu Zongxian's report was delivered, all the ministers in the court looked happy and excited, discussing excitedly how the Japanese rebellion could be put down soon after the pirate leader Wang Zhi was captured.

Just as the general envoy hurried to the cabinet, Yan Song, the chief minister of the cabinet, frowned while looking at the letter in his hand.

When the letter arrived in his hands, his son Yan Shifan had already opened it and read it, leaving a line of small words on the side.

The contents of the letter were shocking enough. The so-called capture turned out to be similar to the previous strategy for dealing with Xu Hai, and was a result of deception.

As for the final disposition of the court, it was natural to seek help from Yan Song. Hu Zongxian hoped to keep Wang Zhi alive. After all, this man had been overseas for many years, was familiar with the situation in foreign vassals, and knew the haunts and hiding places of various pirates.

In the battle to suppress Japanese pirates, if we can get Wang Zhi's help, we can naturally wipe out the remaining small groups of Japanese pirates with overwhelming force.

Hu Zongxian naturally knew what should be concealed and what should not be concealed. In the letter, he wanted to tell Yan Song about the forgery of the pardon edict. How could he dare to report this matter to the court? He was afraid that if he reported it, he would be impeached for treason with the Japanese.

, we can only kill first and then play.

Therefore, Hu Zongxian did not mention the forgery of the edict of pardon in his victory memorial.

However, contrary to Hu Zongxian's idea, the small words left by Yan Shifan were to kill the thief.

Yan Song had been in office for many years, but he didn't know how great the impact of handling this matter was. It can be seen from Hu Zongxian's letter that although Wang Zhi was in his hands, Wang Zhi's troops remained intact at sea and were not destroyed. If it were dealt with

If not done properly, the consequences are really unknown.

However, Yan Song couldn't think of a complete solution for a while. According to his original intention, he still felt that keeping Wang Zhi and recruiting his pirates was the best strategy. At the very least, they should be dispersed and disrupted to prevent them from rising up and causing trouble again.

When the clerk outside the door informed the general envoy to see him, Yan Song knew that it must be for Hu Zongxian's report of victory, so he decisively collected the letter and had it passed in.

By night, the news had spread throughout the capital, and most people in the officialdom even knew the details.

Hu Zongxian captured the Japanese pirate leader Wang Zhi, and Wang Zhi was willing to surrender. Hu Zongxian actually interceded for Wang Zhi and allowed him to perform meritorious service and lead the army to exterminate the Japanese pirates. What kind of joke was this?

Did Hu Zongxian drink too much?

Wang Zhi is the biggest Japanese pirate. To destroy Wang Zhi is to destroy the Japanese pirates. As for the remaining tribes, they are not afraid. With the strength of the official army, dispatching to suppress the bandits will naturally lead to a triumphant song. Wang Zhi is still needed to help lead the way to suppress the bandits.

So before Emperor Jiajing gave instructions on Hu Zongxian's memorial, officials from the DPRK and the Central Government had already begun to communicate with each other. Their purpose was also very simple. Naturally, they wanted to seek justice for the people who had died innocently and tragically since the Japanese pirates' rebellion.

In later generations, there was still considerable debate as to whether Wang Zhi should be killed under the circumstances at that time.

In any case, Wang Zhiling was indeed the leader of the large-scale Japanese pirates' invasion of the Ming Dynasty, which also made him the talkative and leader of the Japanese pirate group.

The numerous crimes committed by Japanese pirates in the Ming Dynasty are too numerous to describe, and it would not be an exaggeration to kill them thousands of times.

However, if we consider the long-term interests of Ming Dynasty Haijiang Ning, it seems that it is logical to keep Wang Zhi alive.

Using Japanese pirates to control Japanese pirates is similar to using barbarians to control barbarians in later generations.

However, most of the courtiers were not aware of this at this time. They focused more on the immediate situation, and no one realized the consequences of arresting and killing Wang Zhi.

The next day, the General Affairs Department was another busy day, because today the ministers of the Manchu Dynasty all submitted memorials one after another like chicken blood, and the content was very consistent. They were all memorials before attacking Hu Zongxian, demanding that the pirate king be dealt with strictly.

straight.

In fact, the General Affairs Department had already prepared for such a situation, and specially dispatched more clerks to help copy copies of the memorial, which could be regarded as improving work efficiency.

A flurry of memorials pleading for severe punishment of Wang Zhi came into the cabinet from the general affairs envoy Si Fei. At this time, Yan Song was very hesitant.

After returning home last night, he had a secret discussion with Yan Shifan. He didn't understand why Yan Shifan supported Yan Shifan in punishing Wang Zhi. Could he not have thought of the consequences of doing so?

But the answer Yan Shifan gave him made him frightened all night long, and the reason was naturally Yan Shifan's little calculation.

At this time, Yan Song basically had the same view as most of the courtiers. If even the strongest group of Japanese pirates, the Japanese pirate king, wanted to submit to the imperial court, what was the mentality of the other Japanese pirates?

As long as Wang Zhi's tribe is dealt with, other small groups of Japanese pirates will inevitably rebel without fighting when faced with the encirclement and suppression by the government troops. The large-scale Japanese rebellion that began in the 31st year of Jiajing should end here.

But in Yan Shifan's opinion, all this does more harm than good, and there is no other benefit.

Nowadays, most of the wealth in Jiangnan belongs to Hu Zongxian's governor-general, who allocates it to suppress Japanese invaders. It can be said that Hu Zongxian is like a little emperor in Jiangnan. He wants money, money, and soldiers.

But once the Japanese suppression is completed, the entire Jiangnan will gradually return to its original state, and the huge benefits brought by additional dispatches will no longer exist.

Japanese pirates, if they can exist for a long time, don't seem to be a bad thing.

What troubled Yan Song the most was his son's passion for money. He actually colluded with maritime merchants through his friend, the merchant Luo Longwen, to secretly conduct maritime trade business.

The imperial court once secretly sold many silks and other Ming Dynasty products to maritime merchants to make money. It was Zhao Wenhua's transaction that made Yan Shifan know the way to make money faster and more profitable, but he suffered from the lack of channels, and this obstacle was in

After he met Luo Wenlong, he was successfully solved.

Luo Longwen, like Wang Zhi who was in the residence of Governor Hu Zongxian, were both natives and fellow villagers of Shexian County, Anhui Province. At the same time, he was also an old acquaintance with Xu Hai, the great pirate who had been wiped out.

Luo Longwen was a businessman who was famous for his ink making. The ink he made was "as hard as stone, with a pattern as rhinoceros, as black as lacquer, and a conch is worth ten thousand dollars."

In the "Wanli Yehuobian" written by Shen Defu during the Wanli period, it is also said: "The price of Xiaohua ink is more than that of Gongbi. Even if you use a pound of horse's hoof to exchange one tael of ink, you may not get the authentic one."

Even Emperor Jiajing was very fond of his calligraphy. When the price was at its highest, one tael of ink could be sold for a pound of gold, but even so, it was often priceless but unmarketable.

Emperor Huizong of the Northern Song Dynasty, Zhao Ji, used Suhe oil to collect smoke and make ink. Later, Jin Zhangzong spent a pound of gold to buy one or two, and he was known as the "Ink Demon".

From this point of view, Luo Wenlong is worthy of the name "Mo Demon".

Before Luo Wenlong got acquainted with Yan Shifan, he already had the dual identity of an ink worker and a businessman. He was not only good at antiquity, but also a heroic and willful man who liked to make friends with strange people everywhere.

At the same time, because money was too easy to come by, he was content with enjoying himself and often hung out in gouran tile shops and spent a lot of money. It is said that Xu Hai met Luo Wenlong in a brothel before he went to sea to become a Japanese pirate, and they became old acquaintances.

He was a fellow villager with Wang Zhi, the famous Japanese pirate leader at the time, and Hu Zongxian, the governor of Jiangnan who was responsible for suppressing Japanese pirates. Naturally, people like him had good luck with both sides, and Luo Wenlong gradually became one of the maritime merchants.

The goods collected from various parts of the Ming Dynasty were trafficked to overseas markets through Japanese pirates for profit, which was naturally the most profitable industry during this period. Although the risks at sea were great, they were nothing compared to the huge benefits.

While the people in the south of the Yangtze River were suffering heavily due to the Japanese rebellion, the Japanese pirates, Hu Zongxian's family and maritime merchants made a lot of money from it and enjoyed huge dividends from maritime trade.

But after all this, after Hu Zongxian used him to deceive Xu Hai and finally caused Xu Hai's death, Luo Wenlong gradually saw the true nature of Hu Zongxian. He was a person who could give up everything for the sake of fame.

Morality does not exist.

He only needs to say that he is "serving the public good" to cover up the countless bastard things he has done, and other people who speak will naturally break some boundaries because they are indeed planning to suppress the Japanese war and have considerable military exploits.

Think he is right.

At this time, Luo Wenlong chose to leave Jiangnan and go to the north, to Beijing, the political center of the empire.

His purpose here was naturally not to organize the supply of goods to continue sea trade, but to realize something else from Hu Zongxian's deception in his treatment of Xu Hai.

That is power. As long as you have power in your hands, many evil things can be explained openly with another explanation, perfectly covering up the past.

Luo Wenlong has a bit of loyalty in nature, so he naturally despises people like Hu Zongxian who are careless in their work.

However, he did not break up with Hu Zongxian because of this, he just stayed away and came to Beijing.

Luo Wenlong's lavish spending in the capital naturally attracted the attention of the local gangsters in the capital, but he had met Zhao Wenhua through Hu Zongxian before, and then had some contact with the Yan family.

Now that Luo Wenlong lives in the capital, he naturally wants to visit the Yan family's gate first.

Yan Shifan naturally had a good impression of such a generous person, and their life styles were very similar. They were both extravagant and lustful people who were greedy for beauty, and they soon became friends with whom they talked about everything.

Good buddy.

Using his own identity, Yan Shifan not only helped Luo Wenlong get the official position of a scholar in the cabinet, but also learned more about the huge profits of sea trade through Luo Wenlong. The huge profits could be doubled several times at every turn, so naturally he was salivating.
To be continued...