Rule the Ming Dynasty Alone

Jiangxi, Nanchang City.

Worship heaven and earth!

Two thanks to Gaotang!

Couple greetings!

Send it to the bridal chamber!

…

Jiangxi Chief Secretary Zhu Yanghe's daughter got married, and the groom was Wang Shouren, the eldest son of Wang Hua, the current governor of Southern Jiangxi. This marriage attracted widespread attention.

Because Nanchang is the provincial capital of Jiangxi, and the three government offices are all here, a large group of officials came today, including almost the entire Nanchang city.

As the No. 1 Duke, Wang Hua already had a transcendent status. Now he was directly promoted by the emperor to the fourth rank of the Imperial Procuratorate, Youqiandu Censor, and Governor of Southern Gansu. Naturally, he was more valued and fawned over by local officials.

It's just that officials who hold office are not allowed to leave their residence. Although Ganzhou Prefecture belongs to Jiangxi, if you, a governor of southern Gansu, go to Nanchang, you will definitely be impeached by the censor.

That's why Wang Hua did not appear here today. The guests here were Jiangxi Chief Secretary Zhu Yang and the groom's official Wang Shouren.

Wang Shouren was only sixteen years old. He had red lips and white teeth. He had the delicacy of a Jiangnan person, but his sharp eyebrows made him look energetic.

Because he was born into a wealthy family, grew up in the capital, and once traveled to frontier fortresses to broaden his horizons, he now possesses a maturity and stability that belies his age.

But after coming out of the church, he still looked gloomy.

My dear son-in-law, don't be impatient. Your father-in-law will help you handle this matter! Zhu Yanghe and Wang Shouren greeted the guests at the door and said to Wang Shouren, who looked anxious.

Wang Shouren immediately felt relieved and said seriously, Thank you, Mr. Taishan!

Easy to say! Zhu Yanghe felt as if he had eaten honey when he heard this title. He reached out and gently stroked his gray beard and said.

Although he has five daughters, the one he is most satisfied with is undoubtedly the youngest daughter whom he has arranged to marry. He is marrying the number one scholar!

The most rare thing is that now Wang Hua has been appointed as the governor of Southern Jiangxi by His Majesty, and his future can be said to be immeasurable.

Is this the son of Duke Zhuangyuan?

“Governor Wang’s son is truly a talented person!”

Haha... Councilors, you have really found a good son-in-law!

…

The prefect of Nanchang arrived first with a group of government officials. Under Zhu Yanghe's introduction, they all commented on Wang Shouren.

Prefect Li, Zhao Tongzhi, and Sun Tongpan, please come in quickly! Zhu Yanghe, already a veteran in the officialdom, said enthusiastically to the officials who came.

Although Wang Shouren had just gotten married, he was only a sixteen-year-old boy after all. He could not smile at all for these irrelevant officials, and the worry in his heart was written on his face.

Master Fantai, it is truly a blessing for my son-in-law and daughter-in-law to have you come in person! Zhu Yanghe saw his immediate boss appearing and immediately greeted him enthusiastically.

Xu Huai, the governor of Jiangxi Province, was an old man over sixty years old. His hair was gray, but his face was rosy and he seemed to be in good spirits.

The man, who had just got off the sedan, smiled kindly at Zhu Yanghe who came up to greet him and said: Senior counselors, we are colleagues of the Chief Envoy. Today is the time when Governor Wang is marrying his daughter-in-law. How can I not come?

Master Fantai, this is my humble son-in-law Wang Shouren! Shouren, come quickly and meet Mr. Fantai! Zhu Yanghe solemnly introduced Wang Shouren, and then said to Wang Shouren.

Wang Shouren knew that Xu Huai had been an official in Jiangxi for many years. From his initial nine-year tenure as Jiangxi's inspector, to Jiangxi's right chief envoy and Jiangxi left chief envoy, it can be said that he has taken root in Jiangxi and has a lot of influence. Influence.

It's just that for some reason this man and his father don't seem to get along. Initially, the construction of the Nangan Governor's Yamen in Ganzhou City relied on the Ganzhou Fu Yamen to advance funds, but now there is another problem with the soldiers' pay for the new army.

After seeing the ceremony, Wang Shouren went straight to the point: Master Fantai, after the soldiers of the Ganzhou New Army were escorted back, they found that they were 20% less. May I ask why this is?

Today is your big day. It's not appropriate for us to talk about such bloody matters! Councilors, I remember that you have a jar of daughter's red that has been buried for twenty years. Can you use it at today's banquet? Xu Huai said to Wang Shouren waved his hands lightly, and then looked at Zhu Yanghedao with a smile.

Haha... Today is of course the altar opening. I will take you to the table right now. I will let you have the first bite later! Even though Zhu Yanghedang was like a spring breeze, he secretly shook his head at Wang Shouren, and then He personally led Xu Huai to the table.

Wang Shouren frowned immediately, and when he saw Xu Huai leaving, he could smell a hint of conspiracy.

Although as early as when he was in the capital, he had always heard about the dangers of local officialdom, and some people warned his father to be more careful. Now that I am actually in it, I realize that what I said is true.

Although they set off from the capital to the south in early February this year and immediately started to form the Ganzhou New Army when they arrived in Ganzhou, they encountered difficulties at every turn.

First, the various prefects did not cooperate with the army building work, and the new army was finally selected. As a result, the matter of money and food was stuck by Si Yamen, the chief envoy of Jiangxi.

Since Jiangxi Chief Envoy Si Yamen had been stuck with military pay, his father was forced to send troops to the bank of Jiangxi Chief Envoy Yamen to release the soldiers' pay and return to Ganzhou.

Although he arrived at the scene and carefully inspected the money of the Chief Envoy, it was only after the money was transported back to Ganzhou government to distribute military pay that he discovered that the money sent back this time was actually 20% less.

It would be nice if the reason for the shortage of military pay can be found. Once the reason for the shortage cannot be found, and the bank account of the Jiangxi Governor's Yamen is indeed correct, then the blame will be placed on his father.

That's why he needs to verify the military salary with the Jiangxi chief envoy today, otherwise his father may face a catastrophe.

Zhu Yanghe left and came back. Looking at Wang Shouren with a sad face, he immediately said with confidence: Xian son-in-law, don't be impatient. Your father-in-law will help you handle everything!

Wang Shouren already had doubts in his heart, but he still raised his hands respectfully and said, Thank you, Mr. Taishan!

Although Zhu Yanghe is only a fourth-rank idle official, Wang Shouren's father is a genuine governor of Southern Jiangxi and is more likely to join the cabinet and become prime minister in the future, so there are many big names appearing today.

Except for Li Ang, the governor of Jiangxi, who was not present, the chiefs of the third division, the prefect of Nanchang, and the governor of Jiangxi were all present. Even Prince Ning sent the chief minister of the palace to congratulate him, which was enough to give Wang Hua face.

Consultants, your wine is really delicious! I am happy today, so we are not allowed to talk about official business at the wine table, otherwise we will not come back drunk! After the banquet started, Xu Huai said loudly and drank happily.

Zhu Yanghe's drinking capacity was average. After a few glasses of wine, his face turned red. He said with a hint of drunkenness: As long as Lord Fantai is happy, I will give up... my life to accompany Lord Fantai!

When Wang Shouren saw his father-in-law's appearance, he realized that he really couldn't count on his father-in-law for the military pay, so he brought up the old matter again and said: Master Fantai, when the military pay of the Ganzhou New Army was escorted back, it was found to be 20% less. May I ask? Why is this?

Qin Minyue, the Right Chief Minister of Jiangxi, was also present this time. After hearing this, he put down the wine glass in his hand and looked at Xu Huai solemnly.

Unlike Xu Huai, who has a rich career experience in Jiangxi, he directly parachuted into Jiangxi officialdom and has served as the right chief envoy of Jiangxi ever since.

Less? This is impossible! Your father sent someone over to take away the soldiers' pay from the bank. The amount was clearly written on the note given by my officer at that time. Weren't you also at the scene that day? Xu Huai immediately made a big move. With a wave of his hand, he seemed to be in denial.

Wang Shouren frowned slightly, and immediately asked the question: Master Fantai, there was no mistake in the escort process, but when I returned to Ganzhou, I found that 20% was missing! Now the student wants to ask Mr. Fantai to check the account book immediately. There is an error in the calculation of the folded silver, please also check whether the cashier in the warehouse is correct, there must be something wrong in some link!

Seeing that Xu Huai actually wanted to argue, he couldn't help but become anxious.

Although he still wanted to believe that this was just a misunderstanding, if Xu Huai repeatedly insisted that Jiangxi Governor Si Yamen had not made any mistakes, then he could only prepare for the worst.

Even from the very beginning when Jiangxi Governor Si Yamen deliberately defaulted on military pay, it was a huge conspiracy. First, he lured his father, who had no experience in handling local military affairs, to send troops to collect the silver. Then he took advantage of a loophole that was not easy to detect, and finally Put the blame for being greedy for military pay on his father's head.

Today is your big day, don't talk about these irrelevant things! I am here to express my position: as long as the silver coins are not taken by others, the silver coins cannot escape. Let's just eat and drink today. I will definitely take care of things later. The investigation is clear! Councilors and Magistrate Li, hurry up and come back, we will not come back until we are drunk! Xu Huaidang said to Zhu Yanghe and other officials even though he was sure.

Yes, as long as the silver coins are not taken by anyone, then the silver coins cannot escape. Let's just eat and drink today! Zuo Shenzheng, the Secretary of General Affairs who had drunk too much, immediately agreed.

Zhu Yanghe's face was already as red as an apple, and he immediately echoed loudly: Come on... I am happy today. Let's get drunk until we get home!

Wang Shouren looked at his father-in-law's appearance, but he knew that he had no hope at all, and he probably couldn't believe Xu Huai's words at all, so he left the table on the pretext of changing his clothes.

As luck would have it, as soon as he reached the corner of the corridor in the front yard, he heard two servants whispering.

One of the servants who had just arrived said to Xu Huai's servant: My Lord Governor asked your Lord not to get too drunk. We have important matters to discuss when we get back.

Governor Li?

Wang Shouren overheard these words and finally became enlightened.

If this matter is involved in the involvement of Li Ang, the governor of Jiangxi, it would make sense.

After all, there was such a serious rogue rebellion in Jiangxi this year. If Xu Pu hadn't protected his own Li Ang in the court, Li Ang, the governor of Jiangxi, would have been demoted long ago.

Now it seems that his father's biggest opponent is not the gang of bandits entrenched in Tai Mo Mountain, but the governor of Jiangxi who wants to maintain his position.

When he thought of this, he couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat. The matter was far more difficult than imagined.

Where's the groom?

That's right! He has been away from the table for too long. Where did he go?

Sir Senator, your son-in-law just said he was going to change clothes. Could it be possible that he has fallen into...

…

The official who was drinking slowly realized that someone was missing next to him, and then he realized that Wang Shouren had already disappeared, even if someone made a bad guess.

The servant who went to look for him in the latrine came back quickly, and then searched the whole house again, but he couldn't find anyone.

Isn't it possible that Governor Wang's son was kidnapped by evildoers?

Jiangxi Chief Secretary Zhu Yanghe was also anxious. At first he felt that Wang Shouren did not understand etiquette, but gradually he became worried that something unexpected happened to Wang Shouren and he would not be able to explain to Wang Hua.

The prefect of Nanchang looked very enthusiastic at the banquet, and immediately sent all the officials of the Nanchang Prefecture to spread throughout the city to look for Wang Shouren.

History seems to have not changed. After all, Wang Shouren did escape from the wedding night again, but the situation is different.

At this time, Wang Shouren was not sitting in meditation with an old Taoist named Wuwei Taoist in Tiezhu Palace, but was already riding on the official road to Ganzhou Prefecture.

Wangjun, Ganchuan, is a famous capital on the right side of the Yangtze River.

Ganzhou City originated from the sixth year of Emperor Gaodi of the Western Han Dynasty. After being destroyed, during the Yonghe period of Jin Dynasty, the prefect Gao Yan began to build the city between the Zhanggong and Gong rivers. The ancient city is surrounded by Zhangjiang and Gongjiang rivers, and the Zhangjiang and Gongjiang rivers merge to the east to form the Ganjiang River.

The brick wall of this ancient city left over from the Song Dynasty is seven meters high and has a circumference of more than seven kilometers. It has five gates: Yongjin Gate, Jianchun Gate, Xijin Gate, Zhennan Gate and Baisheng Gate.

Because it has avoided the dangers of war many times, it has maintained the style of the Song Dynasty, and the streets on both sides look antique, so it is also known as the Capital of the Song Dynasty.

The newly established Governor's Yamen of Southern Gansu is located in the west of the city, on the same street as the County Yamen and Fu Yamen.

Wang Hua, who was wearing a fourth-grade official uniform, was no longer as calm and relaxed as when he was in the Hanlin Academy earlier. Facing various affairs of the governor's office in southern Jiangxi, he was already exhausted.

After he went south according to the order, he also mobilized strong men from various places to station troops outside the city.

The original plan was to directly clear out the bandits in Tai Mo Shan. However, they had raised troops twice before and returned without success. This time they went again and fell into a trap.

Unexpectedly, there was a problem with the pay of the soldiers who had returned from Jiangxi Chief Secretary's Yamen. He wrote to Wuchang to inquire, but he has not received a reply so far.

Master, the young master is back! At this moment, a joyful voice came from outside the door.

Wang Hua's eyes suddenly lit up, and he immediately looked at his son who walked in with a straight face, and said as a father, Why are you back so soon?

Dad, my child has been married, so he will naturally come back to help dad fight off the bandits! Wang Shouren said matter-of-factly when he saw the tea cups on the table.

Wang Hua knew that his son's thoughts were still on the new army in Ganzhou, so he looked behind him and said, Where is Wenjun?

Dad, didn't you say that? Ganzhou is not safe here, let her stay in Wuchang City! Wang Shouren saw that his father did not stop him, and immediately picked up the tea cup and took a sip of tea.

Wang Hua looked at his son up and down, but corrected him: Before you go to Nanchang, father remembered to ask you two to stay in Nanchang together, right?

How can a son and a daughter love each other when a man has his ambitions in all directions? Dad, I'm afraid the soldier's salary matter is worse than imagined. I suspect that the soldier's salary matter is a trap set by Li Ang, the governor of Jiangxi! Wang Shouren drank all the remaining tea. , appearing to express his judgment seriously.

Wang Hua knew that his son was not an innocent person, so he immediately said calmly: Do you have any evidence?

No, but my child inadvertently knew that Li Ang and Xu Huai were closely related, so Xu Huai probably got Li Ang's instruction! Dad, my child's guess must be very close, so you must go to Shu immediately to prove your innocence to His Majesty. And the eradication of the Tai Mo Shan bandits cannot be delayed any longer! As long as we can subdue them in one fell swoop, His Majesty will believe what we say instead of suspecting that you have embezzled military pay! Wang Shouren put down the tea cup, then reached out to take it off and put it on his lips A piece of tea ceremony.

Wang Hua first smiled bitterly, then glared at his son and said, When did you want to delay my father? He raised troops three times but failed. Now my father even doubts whether their home base is in Tai Mo Shan!

My child has thought a lot along the way. I have probably found the problem! Wang Shouren said seriously as if he had come back to life after quenching his thirst.

Wang Hua frowned slightly and asked in confusion: What's the problem?

Dad, as long as you obey my arrangements this time, I will break the situation for you! Wang Shouren met Wang Hua's gaze and said confidently.

Some things in history can be changed, but some things are inevitable. It is inevitable that the bandits in Ganzhou will become more and more rampant.

The land in the central and northern parts of Ganzhou Prefecture is fertile, but the land in the southern part is barren and the terrain is dangerous. The vast mountains are connected to Guangdong, Fujian and Huguang, so it is very suitable for bandits to occupy.

But unfortunately, Ganzhou Prefecture is another place that must be passed through to connect to Guangdong.

The main transportation routes between central and eastern Guangdong and the Central Plains are the Xijing Ancient Road and Meiguan Road. Xijing Ancient Road was the road from Guangdong to Chang'an or Luoyang in the past. However, now the political center has moved north and the economic center has moved south, so Meiguan Road has become the first choice for businessmen and candidates taking exams.

After passing the Meiling examination, candidates can walk or take a carriage to Dahu County. From Dahu County, they turn to the waterway and follow the Zhangjiang River to Ganzhou. In Ganzhou, they take a larger boat and go straight down the river, passing through Gu'an, Zhangshu, Nanchang, Poyang Lake enters the Yangtze River from Hukou to Dangyang, where it can be transferred down the river to Yangzhou, and then northward from Yangzhou along the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal.

Ganzhou Prefecture is the only place that Meiguan Road must pass through, so commerce here is developed and it has become a transit point for goods traveling from south to north.

The regional gap between the poor in the south and the rich in the north is too great. The southern region is suitable for bandits to occupy. The wealthy central and northern Ganzhou government gentry class annexed land and forced more and more people to farm, making it easy for bandits to breed.

Just like this, the rise of thieves in Ganzhou is inevitably related to the land annexation in the Ming Dynasty. During the Hongzhi period, when land annexation was the most serious, thieves in Ganzhou and other border areas gradually grew stronger.

Okay, I promise you! After some hesitation, Wang Hua finally chose to compromise with his son.

History seems to have not changed. The fates of Wang Shouren and the bandits in southern Gansu are intertwined. I just don't know if Wang Shengren can still solve the crux of the bandits in southern Ganxi.