Chapter 2: Wei Zhongxian

As the sun slowly rose through the clouds in the northeast, bells and drums suddenly rang out in unison outside the Meridian Gate. An attendant walked slowly to the entrance of the great hall and called out loudly to the ministers who had long since frozen stiff outside: "Summon them in."

The civil and military ministers seemed to awaken from a dream, moving their frozen legs, and filed in through the side gates on the left and right of the Meridian Gate, crossing the Golden Water Bridge, and arranged themselves on both sides of the Hall of Supreme Harmony according to their ranks.

At the very front of the civil officials stood Chief Grand Secretary Liu Yijing, while at the front of the military officials stood Zhang Weixian, Duke of Ying.

Everyone entered the great hall, took their positions, and waited for the Emperor's arrival, their hearts settling as if they had taken a calming pill. The Emperor had been ill for some days and had not held morning court; now, at last, he seemed to be recovering.

At this very moment, Zhu Youxiao sat in the warm pavilion, listening to the sound of bells and drums outside, his heart stirring with emotion as well.

However, he still had no intention of attending court. Because the morning court at present was utterly meaningless. The Great Ming had reached such a state that there was actually little he could do himself, so he might as well let Wei Zhongxian take the lead out front, while he himself became a true carpenter emperor.

The civil and military ministers in the great hall craned their necks in anticipation, yet they did not see the Tianqi Emperor. The entire hall fell into a strange and eerie silence, carrying an ominous air of a storm about to break.

"Your Majesty, the civil and military officials are all waiting." Wang An, growing anxious when the Emperor did not appear, used an excuse to come to the warm pavilion, where he saw Chen Hong massaging the Emperor's shoulders.

"I have suddenly grown weary." Zhu Youxiao felt his head grow dizzy, found an excuse, and dismissed Wang An.

This morning court fell through because of the Tianqi Emperor's indolence. The members of the Donglin Faction grew uneasy, not knowing what their Emperor truly meant by this.

Zhu Youxiao paced back and forth in the warm pavilion, not knowing how he could possibly repair this dynasty.

He only remembered that many things had happened in the first year of Tianqi. It was in this very year that the Later Jin rose to power, Shenyang fell, and nearly all of the three northeastern provinces fell into the hands of the Later Jin. From then on, the Later Jin and the Great Ming began a war lasting twenty years, and from this year onward, the Great Ming had completely entered the countdown to its destruction.

At this time, the Great Ming was like a great mansion about to collapse, riddled with holes and flaws. Although he knew reform was necessary, no matter where he touched, the ramifications were enormous.

Before the new year, Chief Grand Secretary Fang Congzhe had already been impeached multiple times by Minister of Rites Sun Shenxing and others, and Fang Congzhe had voluntarily resigned.

A high-ranking official of the Donglin Faction impeaching the leader of the Zhejiang Faction — what did this indicate? Clearly, the Donglin Faction could no longer contain itself.

This Donglin Faction was not as simple as it appeared on the surface. They wanted to exploit the Tianqi Emperor's youth and his lack of understanding of the court situation, cutting through the tangled mess with a swift knife to further increase their control over the court.

The current Chief Grand Secretary was Liu Yijing, but this man would not last long either, because the Donglin Faction could not possibly allow Liu Yijing to be Chief Grand Secretary. They had pulled Fang Congzhe down from the top position not so that Liu Yijing could pick up the spoils. They planned to have the Donglin Faction's elder statesman Ye Xianggao assume the post of Chief Grand Secretary, but at this moment Zhu Youxiao did not need Ye Xianggao to be Chief Grand Secretary.

In the original Tianqi era, Ye Xianggao could be called a heavyweight figure. Within the Donglin Faction, the most ferocious was Yang Lian, and the most clever was this gentleman Ye Xianggao.

As a notorious old slickster who had clawed his way through officialdom for decades and was famous throughout the realm, Ye Xianggao's arrival marked the Donglin Faction's entry into its golden age.

The Donglin Faction was very skilled at making trouble over the heir apparent, playing their games of rhetoric with great finesse, and were extremely adept at bamboozling the crown prince.

Whether it was his cheap father who had been emperor for only a month before kicking the bucket, or his younger brother Chongzhen, the ruler of a fallen nation who hanged himself, both had been fooled senseless by the Donglin Faction.

"Whether what I do is right or wrong, so long as I don't follow history, that's fine." Zhu Youxiao sighed inwardly to himself, and at the same time resolved to cultivate his own people.

Only, factional strife at court was severe, and cultivating one's own people was hardly so easy. At present there was only one path — simple, convenient, and smooth — and that was to cultivate the eunuch faction.

Gently setting down the teacup in his hand, Zhu Youxiao waved his hand, signaling Chen Hong, who was massaging his shoulders, to withdraw, then said in a flat tone: "Go, find Wei Zhongxian and bring him to me."

At this time, although Wei Zhongxian had already received the post of brush-holder in the Directorate of Ceremonial, his power and influence were far less. Although he had changed back to his original name, he was still far from the Nine Thousand Years of later times.

If Zhu Youxiao wanted to use someone, this man was naturally the first choice. If he promoted Wei Zhongxian, Wei would naturally tear into those Donglin, Qi, Zhe, and Chu factions. There were some things that he, as Emperor, found inconvenient to do himself — Wei Zhongxian was just right for the job.

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Chen Hong dared not be negligent, hurriedly nodded, and retreated with his body bowed. He was puzzled inwardly, but dared not show the slightest sign of it on his face.

Before long, Wei Zhongxian walked in from outside with a bowed posture, prostrated himself on the ground, and kowtowed: "This servant pays respects to Your Majesty!"

Zhu Youxiao nodded, leaning askew on the daybed, and looked at Wei Zhongxian with a smile: "I know you are a man of talent, and I have always been good at recognizing and employing capable people. I hear that Lady Fengsheng has not been feeling well lately, and the imperial physicians in the palace have examined her several times without any success. I hear that you are highly skilled in medicine outside the palace. Since that is the case, why don't you go and take a look at Lady Fengsheng."

The so-called Lady Fengsheng was in fact Madam Ke — this woman was Zhu Youxiao's wet nurse, a very famous figure in history, though famous for all the wrong reasons.

There were all sorts of legends. Some said Wei Zhongxian and Madam Ke became the Tianqi Emperor's confidants and constant companions, teaching him the pleasures of the bedchamber; others said Madam Ke colluded with Wei Zhongxian to seize power, and in order to consolidate her own position, cruelly harmed pregnant consorts in the harem, lest a consort give birth to a child and rise in status through the child, threatening her position — she was even said to have harmed the legitimate son in the Empress's womb.

How much of this was mud-slinging and how much was fact, Zhu Youxiao did not know.

But there was one thing Zhu Youxiao did know: that Wei Zhongxian's collusion with Madam Ke was real, and Madam Ke was indeed running rampant in the harem, ambitious and powerful beyond measure. Her son Hou Guoxing, her younger brother Ke Guangxian, and Wei Zhongxian's elder brother Wei Zhao were all Chiliarchs of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Whether the Tianqi Emperor and Madam Ke had any improper relations, he did not care, but this woman was highly prone to creating potential danger, and he had no intention of sparing her life.

Moreover, according to Great Ming regulations, when a prince reached the age of six, his wet nurse had to leave the palace. But this Madam Ke simply refused to leave, stubbornly lingering for over a decade more. Her purpose went without saying.

Wei Zhongxian was to be used, but he could not have Madam Ke fanning the flames at his side, nor could he allow Wei Zhongxian to eliminate the trusted eunuchs around himself, such as Wang An and others.

There were countless eunuchs in the palace, and countless who eyed this position with envy and jealousy. He, the Tianqi Emperor, wanted to tell everyone that he not only liked Wang An, but would also heavily employ Wang An — Wang An's position was very secure.

Zhu Youxiao still had some understanding of Ming dynasty eunuchs. When you had power and influence, these people would certainly curry favor with you desperately; when you lost your position, these people would certainly be the ones to strike the hardest.