Chapter 117 Why I Dare Not (Subscribe)
"presumptuous!"

In front of the Taoist platform, Lu Fang snorted coldly.

He looked at Yan Shaoting with a serious expression: "Reader Yan, in front of His Majesty..."

But before Lu Fang could finish his words, Jiajing waved at him.

Lu Fang was stopped and continued speaking.

Jiajing glanced at Yan Shaoting with a hint of mockery in his eyes.

"Good boy!"

"How dare you plot against me!"

On the platform in the inner hall of Yuxi Palace, Jiajing stared and waved his finger at Yan Shaoting who was talking nonsense.

But there was a smile on his face.

Yan Shaoting immediately raised his hand and waved his robe, ready to kneel down.

Jiajing snorted twice: "Don't kneel, explain the matter first."

……

"father!"

"That kid hasn't come back yet. What did he talk about with His Majesty in the West Garden?"

In the Yan Mansion, in old man Yan's study, Yan Shifan looked anxious and uneasy.

Since he lost the power to serve in the cabinet, Yan Shifan can only report to the Ministry of Works every day and leave on time.

Life became easier, so much so that his face looked rounder.

Yan Song was flipping through a book.

Different from the past, he only loves rare ancient books and enjoys miscellaneous talks on psychology.

Now he is held in the hands of Old Yan.

It was a newly published copy of the Ming Dynasty Code.

Seeing that the old man said nothing, Yan Shifan's face became even more anxious.

"Look! Look! Look! Even if you read this Ming Dynasty law book to pieces, you can't get rid of Xu Jie, Gao Gong, Zhang Juzheng and others!"

"You should think about me, your son first."

Yan Shifan stamped his feet in hatred, his lips turned a little pale, probably because he was really furious.

Yan Song finally raised his head with some displeasure, put down the Ming Law in his hand, and looked at his only son.

"What do you want me to think about you?"

Yan Shifan slammed his hands together and gritted his teeth, saying, "Have you forgotten that after the Xiyuan Incident, the first thing Lu Yi found out was that there were problems with the accounts of the Ministry of Industry's Military Equipment Bureau, the Saddle and Bridle Bureau, and the Firearms Warehouse.

Now, the guy who you have high hopes for is in charge of this matter. Today, he interrogated the people from the Ordnance Bureau, the Saddle and Bridle Bureau, and the Firearms Depot in front of the Meridian Gate.

Have you forgotten?

Your son, me!
Are you working in the Ministry of Industry?
Your grandson is investigating like this now, aren't you worried at all that your grandson might find out about your son?"

Yan Shifan's tone was somewhat sad.

Ever since the Xiyuan Incident, Yan Shaoting obtained the hosting rights and he became unpopular in the Ministry of Industry.

Although the officials of the Ministry of Works were afraid of the young cabinet minister's former power and dared not say anything, no one could blame them for choosing not to have any contact with him at the moment.

For several days in a row, Yan Shifan seemed to be isolated by his colleagues in the Ministry of Works.

Yan Song looked at his son with deep eyes and asked, "Do the accounts of the Military Equipment Bureau, the Saddle and Bridle Bureau, and the Firearms Warehouse have anything to do with you?"

Yan Shifan immediately snorted, "It has nothing to do with me!"

In view of my son's past performance.

Yan Song remained skeptical and asked again, "Really?"

Looking at his father's face full of doubt, Yan Shifan suddenly wondered if he was being targeted by the old man.

He said angrily: "Who would care about the little money and grain from the Military Equipment Bureau? The big money is for the court to build rivers and embankments, warships, and palaces..."

The further he spoke, the quieter Yan Shifan's voice became.

Looking at the old man whose face had turned gloomy.

Yan Shifan could only save his dignity by saying, "My son can still tell the difference between a military weapon and a national weapon!"

Yan Song snorted.

"Since those accounts have nothing to do with you, why are you making a fuss here?"

Yan Shifan was stunned for a moment.

After a while, he said, "I am worried that the boy will not know the seriousness of the situation and will cause unrest in the government."

Yan Song sighed, "Then why do you think Shao Ting had to check the accounts of the Arms Bureau and the Firearms Depot when it was clearly the Xiyuan Incident and a gunshot outside the palace wall?"

Yan Shifan frowned.

This was a question he had never thought about.

He couldn't help but ask, "Then why did he check the accounts of the Arms Bureau and the Firearms Depot?"

……

"Why did you only check the accounts of the Arms Bureau and the Gunpowder Magazine after several days?"

In Yuxi Palace, Jiajing, who was sitting on the Taotai, asked in an ambiguous tone.

Yan Shaoting clasped his fists and said, "During the Xiyuan Incident, a gunshot was heard outside the palace wall. The Jinyiwei and the Dongchang are already investigating the real culprit. The Dongchang and the Dongchang are experts in this field. If I interfere without permission, it may cause more trouble.

However, the laws of the Ming Dynasty of our dynasty stipulate that any case must be investigated.

The Xiyuan Incident has uncovered the accounts of the Arsenal and the Firearms Depot. I believe that these involve the military and the country, and are bound to be related to the Xiyuan Incident, so they must be investigated.

If this matter is not investigated as soon as possible, if the firearms in the Xiyuan Incident are related to the Arsenal and the Gunpowder Depot, and the court does not take precautions and control, it is inevitable that there will be more incidents in the future. For the sake of your majesty's safety and the peace of the court, I have discussed with Jinyiwei Commander Lu Yi that the factory guards will investigate the real culprit of the Xiyuan Incident, and I will check the accounts of the Arsenal and the Gunpowder Depot.

Your Majesty, please understand. "

Jiajing chuckled and turned to look at Lu Fang.

Lu Fang also smiled, bowed slightly, and looked sideways at Yan Shaoting.

Jiajing said, "Look, this guy is really good at talking. He made the reason clear and even praised the ability of your factory guards."

Although Lu Fang was not in charge of the Imperial Household Department, he was the eunuch in charge of the Imperial Household Department.

But the one in charge of the factory and guard affairs now is the eunuch Huang Jin, who is in charge of the Secretariat.

Huang Jin and he were not only superiors and subordinates in the Imperial Household Department, but they also had a very good personal relationship.

The Taoist priest has his reasons for saying so.

Lu Fang also nodded with a smile: "My Lord, Master Yan has always been a sensible person. Master Yan and the servants work for the sake of helping the Lord to relieve his worries."

Jiajing glanced at Lu Fang, and then asked Yan Shaoting: "So, what did you find out outside the Meridian Gate today? That's why you dare to ask me if I dare to open a major case."

Yan Shaoting bowed and then took out a memorial that he had compiled today from his sleeve.

Upon seeing this, Lu Fang immediately stepped forward, took the memorial and presented it to the Taotai.

Yan Shaoting also explained: "Today, I inquired about the accounts of officials from the Arms Bureau and the Firearms Depot. After questioning and checking, the accounts I checked were shocking!
However, I originally thought that these false accounts were only in the Arsenal, Firearms Depot, etc., and did not involve other places.

But after a careful check, I couldn't help but feel terrified. The accounts of the Arms Bureau and the Firearms Storehouse have already implicated the general accounts of the Ministry of Works, the Ministry of War, and the Ministry of Revenue. Now in our dynasty, not only are the accounts of the Arms Bureau and the Firearms Storehouse questionable, but all the accounts involving military and national affairs are problematic.

Things like armor, swords and guns, and even the food and grass supplies for the army, contain countless secrets. I don’t know at this moment how many officials are involved in them, and how many people have taken advantage of them to embezzle money and food and enrich themselves.

When I look at the things we are investigating today, I can't help but think of the Guo Heng case during the time of our Taizu, which spread to the two capitals and thirteen provinces of our Ming Dynasty.

I dare not judge this case alone, fearing that it would cause unrest in the court, or even worse, cause unrest. I have just dared to ask to see Your Majesty and respectfully request your majesty’s judgment.”

"Be bold!"

While Yan Shaoting was making his response, Jiajing was also flipping through the memorial he had brought out.

A roar.

Jiajing threw the memorial away.

The memorial was thrown far away and fell to the ground, sliding far away due to inertia.

Lu Fang knelt down immediately.

"Your Majesty, calm down."

But Jiajing glared at Yan Shaoting and said, "You are here, right now, and explain it to me clearly."

Yan Shaoting nodded and took a deep breath: "There are countless political affairs in the court, but in comparison, they are divided into important and unimportant ones.

This incident at the Arsenal and the Firearms Depot extends to all matters concerning the military and the country. I am shocked to see it. And with the Xiyuan Incident happening before, I have to worry about it even more.

If this continues, although our dynasty claims to have a million Ming troops, once unrest breaks out in the country, it will inevitably lead to foreign invasion. At that time, internal and external troubles will follow one after another. Under the current situation of shortage of military supplies and food, can our dynasty's troops suppress the unrest in the country and keep the enemy out of the border?

The number of items manufactured and stored in the Arsenal, Firearms Depot, etc. is less than half of the stated number. The same is true for armor, swords, and guns.

How can the soldiers on the front line train when the military equipment is insufficient?
Even if there are good generals in the army who train officers and soldiers day and night, once internal and external troubles arise, can we still expect the soldiers to fight the enemy empty-handed?
Our dynasty is a benevolent and righteous army, and every battle must be justified. But the enemy is not like this. For example, outside the Nine Borders, there are only remnants of the former Yuan Dynasty. Now the Anda tribe often goes south to invade the Nine Borders, harming our border people and looting our supplies inside the border.

Although the country seems to be at peace now, it is surrounded by powerful enemies. I am favored by Your Majesty and receive great grace, but I dare not forget for a single day that the country is surrounded by enemies.

I believe that the Ming Dynasty does not need to start a war, but it cannot forget about war.

According to the Records of the Grand Historian, the Biography of Pingjin Hou Zhufu, Sima Fa said, "A country may be great, but it will perish if it loves war; and the world may be at peace, but it will be in danger if it forgets war. When the world is at peace, the emperor will be in great triumph, and in spring the vassal will be planted and in autumn the vassal will be replenished. The vassal states will mobilize their troops in spring and train their troops in autumn, so they will not forget war."

Holy Prelude is just that.

It is necessary to quote classics and make long speeches to make things reasonable and unquestionable, so that the goal can be achieved in the end.

And every time Yan Shaoting said a little more, Jiajing's face darkened.

At last.

Jiajing's face turned completely gloomy.

Lu Fang seemed unaware of it and cooperated with Yan Shaoting.

"Your Majesty, when Taizu and Chengzu raised the military, our Ming Dynasty marched north for many years and defeated the Yuan Dynasty, forcing it to flee in panic. Since then... our dynasty has been unable to carry out the tasks of conquering Yinshan Mountain and sealing the Wolf's Lair.

If it is true as what Yan Shidu said, the imperial court's military preparations are so neglected, if a thief raises a large army and there happens to be a rebellion in the country, how can our dynasty resist the enemy?"

Lu Fang's face was filled with worry, as if a powerful enemy was about to attack the Ming Dynasty in the next second.

On the platform, Jiajing's face turned pale and he slammed his hands heavily on the table.

"presumptuous!"

Jiajing was breathing heavily, his chest rising and falling noticeably.

He raised his head and looked at Yan Shaoting: "Are you asking me if I dare to bring a major case?"

Yan Shaoting bowed: "I think that although the Ming Dynasty should not indulge in war, it should not forget war and enjoy pleasure. Regardless of the size of the case, it is time to make great efforts to rectify the military.

The reason why I have the audacity to raise this question to Your Majesty is that if this matter is thoroughly investigated and reformed, it will surely cause a stir in the court and even chaos in the court and the public, which is why I have this question.

snort!
Jiajing snorted coldly, and then spoke in a cold voice.

"Why shouldn't I dare?"

Jiajing looked at Lu Fang with a gloomy gaze.

"Summon the cabinet and enter the palace immediately."

…………

Monthly ticket recommendation ticket

　Thanks for the Royal Tea Party

　
(End of this chapter)