Father can be an enemy to the country

In Yanzhou, the imperial envoy was traveling to the palace.

Zhu Zhen's judgment made the two Shandong officials look refreshed.

"What the prince said is absolutely true. The people's troubles this time are indeed different." Hu Rang nodded and said: "People say 'killing officials to rebel', but they only detained officials from various places. So far, I have not heard of any News of the death of the magistrate."

"It seems that they also know that once the official is killed, the nature of the matter will completely change." Wu Yin also said solemnly: "But this should only be the idea of ​​​​the leader. The people below may not be able to bear it all the time."

"Yes." Zhu Zhen nodded and said: "They should not just vent their anger, but have demands. That's why they detained local officials... Zhou Shiwei, the prefect of Laizhou, almost escaped from Laizhou, but was caught up again. ?"

"But we don't know yet what demands they have." Hu Rang said softly.

"You will know soon." Zhu Zhen said firmly: "They detained Magistrate Li and hunted Magistrate Zhou, probably to negotiate with the Lord Prefect. Of course, if the negotiation does not go well, the prefects will become them and you." Two bargaining chips.”

"Then the prince is saying that we should just wait and see what happens?" Wu Yin asked in a low voice, "Wait until they make a request?"

"No, we can't wait." Zhu Zhen shook his head decisively and said: "No matter whether it is riot or rebellion, there is no escape from the word 'chaos'. If the people are incited, no one can decide how the situation will develop. Every delay One day, the risk of the situation getting out of control increases, and if it drags on for another three to five days, it might really turn into a rebellion!"

After a pause, he said in a deep voice: "Besides, I never negotiate with robbers..."

"But if we don't negotiate, how can we know what the other party wants?" Both of them were a little confused. If we neither plan to send troops nor negotiate, how can we achieve a quick victory?

Isn’t it necessary for the horse to run fast and not eat grass?

"You don't need to negotiate to know their demands." Zhu Zhenzhizhu said: "According to my experience, in troubles like this, people are often the ones on the stage. The real boss behind the scenes is nothing more than the squire. Landlord."

"Your Majesty is so experienced." Wu Yin sighed in admiration: "Those rural sages and gentry are indeed used to using the common people as weapons."

"So no matter it is in Suzhou, Nanchang, Guangzhou or Kunming, whenever the common people make trouble, I will always arrest the big ones first. Strangely enough, I never arrest the wrong person. Every time I arrest them, the situation will calm down immediately. Quite a few. I don’t know if I am lucky or if they are just born bad.”

"The prince's trick is really powerful..." The two of them couldn't help but smile bitterly, but it was a pity that only he could use it. Which big family has no one in the court? If they dare to follow suit, they will definitely be left with nothing to eat.

"What a coincidence, the two largest wealthy families in Shandong are both in Yanzhou Prefecture, and I have already invited them over." Zhu Zhen said calmly: "When they arrive, you can meet with me."

As soon as they heard it, they knew which two families the prince was talking about? The largest landowner in Shandong, the Kong family, lives in Qufu, more than thirty miles away from Yanzhou City; the second largest landowner in Shandong, the Meng family, lives in Zouxian County, forty miles south of Yanzhou City.

The ancestors of these two families are Confucius and Mencius, so they are not only the largest landowners, but also have a high voice and unparalleled influence in Shandong.

The prince found these two people, and he really found the rightful owner...

~~

After the founding of the Ming Dynasty, cities were rebuilt across the country, and the royal city of the vassal king was the top priority.

Yanzhou City was the fiefdom of King Lu. Because the ancient city was narrow, Zhu Yuanzhang ordered Guo Ying to move the city wall two miles and thirty feet south, turned the original south moat into a city-crossing river, and made the gate tower and city wall taller and wider. . On the outside of the rammed earth city wall, city bricks weighing about forty kilograms were wrapped and rebuilt.

Among them, the gate tower of Dezheng Gate at the south gate is the tallest, majestic and majestic. The outer gate tower extends several feet to the south, like a dragon's head stretching south to drink from the Si River.

At this time, not far from the leader, a large-scale motorcade stopped beside the official road.

The appearance of the carriage is simple and elegant, decorated with cloud patterns, and the corners and window frames are covered with brass. The carriages are pulled by pure white horses without a single hair.

Not to mention those capable servants in green clothes, who really show the style of a wealthy family.

Of course, on the red avoidance card, the three big characters "Shenggong Mansion" are written in black, which is enough to show that he is indeed qualified to set up this chart - a thousand-year-old family, only the south is open and the north is open.

At this time, Kong Xixue, the first Duke of Yansheng in the Ming Dynasty, had passed away, and his son Kong Ne succeeded him as Duke Yansheng.

Kong Ne was only twenty-eight years old, an age when he was young and full of confidence. At this time, he was wearing the crimson official robe of a first-class civil servant of the Ming Dynasty, sitting in a carriage, reading the "Spring and Autumn" in his hand.

Sixteen young and handsome servant boys lined up in two rows, holding handkerchiefs, snacks, tea cups, spittoons and other items, standing motionless outside the carriage.

The most outrageous thing is that there is no accompaniment! In the adjacent carriage, several musicians were playing the piano and flute, making great music. Moreover, separated by two carriages, the music was not harsh at all, but rather more distant and mysterious.

Of course, according to Yan Shenggong himself, this was to strictly observe etiquette and law, so he could not ride in the same car with a woman. I don’t think it’s too noisy in the same carriage.

Unfortunately, the gates of Yanzhou City have been closed for several days, so no one came to watch his appearance, which is a pity.

At this time, the foreign minister said softly: "Master, the Meng family is here."

"Yes." Kong Ne didn't even move his buttocks before he ordered, "Brother Nobuo, please get in the car and talk."

"Yes." Chang Sui responded and went to deliver the message.

Compared with the pomp of the descendants of the Kong family, the posture of the descendants of the Meng family seems much shabby... there are only three carriages and two to three hundred guards.

The head of the Meng family of this generation is named Meng Keren, also named Nobufu.

The Meng family is not like the Kong family. The Confucian family has always represented Confucianism, and its status has always been very high. The Meng family did not receive special preferential treatment from the court for a long time. It was not until the fourth year of Jingyou's reign of Emperor Renzong of the Song Dynasty that Confucius's forty-fifth generation grandson Kong Daofu guarded Yanzhou and visited Mencius's tomb in the sun of Siji Mountain. A Mencius Temple was built on its site.

Kong Daofu also visited Mencius' forty-fifth generation grandson Meng Ning in Fu Village, and recommended him to the court, where he worshiped Di Gonglang and the chief registrar of Zouxian County. He was ordered to lead the clan, compile the genealogy, and be in charge of worship services.

The next year, he built the Temple of the Five Sages on the west side of his Confucius Temple. Mencius, Xunzi, Yang Xiong, Wang Tong, and Han Yu were respected as the "Five Sages" and statues were set up to worship them.

Later, when Kong Daofu returned to Beijing to serve as the censor Zhongcheng, he repeatedly joined forces with famous officials at the time to recommend Mencius to the court, which finally aroused the emperor's interest in Mencius.

In the sixth year of Yuanfeng, Emperor Shenzong of the Song Dynasty granted Mencius the title of Duke of Zou. The edict stated: "Since the death of Confucius, the ways of the previous kings were unclear, and they used their subtle words to edict the three sages. The credit goes to the Meng family, which has been the ancestor of all generations." ’

Only then did the Meng family begin to rise.

Therefore, the descendants of Mencius have always followed the Confucius family. When Confucius shouted, Meng Keren had to get off the car and go over.