Chapter 386: No Grain, No Stability in the Great Ming

"Shame on you, calling yourself a scholar!"

Hearing Ruan Dacheng's words, Cui Chengxiu's face darkened.

Though in his heart Cui Chengxiu knew there was surely some exaggeration in these words. Ruan Dacheng had come here seeking nothing more than advancement. The bigger and more urgent he made things sound, the more Cui Chengxiu would need him.

Under such circumstances, Ruan Dacheng would naturally say things that were less than realistic—embellishing his words somewhat was hardly a major problem.

But there was one thing Ruan Dacheng would not lie about, and that was the matter itself—meaning that someone really was preparing to do this now, that they were going to link up with one another and stand up to oppose Cui Chengxiu.

Although Cui Chengxiu was the only one in court who had proposed the rebuilding of the Imperial Academy, he knew in his heart that the resolve behind this undertaking was very great, and it rested mainly with His Majesty.

There were those in court who agreed, but not many; there were those who opposed, but no one voiced it.

The reason was not whether the opposition was many or few. Those who approved did not dare speak; those who opposed did not dare speak—it was simply that His Majesty had suppressed them all.

If the rebuilding of the Imperial Academy went smoothly, all would be well; but if the slightest thing went wrong, or even if public opinion boiled over, then someone would surely jump out to oppose it.

And the one actually handling this matter would certainly become the target of everyone's arrows—though that was not even the most critical part.

The most critical part was His Majesty. If something went wrong and he botched it himself, how would he account for it to His Majesty?

His Majesty had done so much in the early stages, suppressing so many people, and if he botched things on his end—never mind using this matter to earn merit and pursue advancement, he would probably lose even what he currently had.

Cui Chengxiu understood that if he lost His Majesty's trust, he would be completely finished.

Once he was finished, all those he had offended would trample him into the mud.

Cui Chengxiu looked at Ruan Dacheng and said with a grim face, "Who wants to make trouble?"

"It is Wei Dazhong."

Seeing that Cui Chengxiu was angry, Ruan Dacheng knew in his heart that his words had taken effect, and so he hurriedly blurted out Wei Dazhong's name.

With this matter before them, as long as Wei Dazhong fell, the reform would have no problems. Zhong Yuzheng was already old, and he was indecisive by nature with no opinions of his own—the reform of the Shoushan Academy would be entirely up to him.

Once the Shoushan Academy reform succeeded, it would become another Imperial Academy in the capital. At that time, his own position would surely rise like a boat with the tide, and he would surely carve out a new path in officialdom.

"Wei Dazhong." Hearing this name, Cui Chengxiu's brow twitched, and he said, "Is he not Gao Panlong's student?"

"So Lord Cui knows of him too?" Ruan Dacheng hastily asked.

Cui Chengxiu nodded and said, "Naturally I have heard of him. Some time ago there was a debate in the capital, concerning the Imperial Academy. Wei Dazhong once opposed the establishment of the Imperial Academy. I never expected this man to still want to jump out now. It seems his thieving heart has not died!"

"Indeed!" Ruan Dacheng nodded, speaking in a rather emotional tone, "These people simply will not give up. He is preparing to go around rallying support. As soon as I heard of it, I came to report to Lord Cui."

"This matter is very important." Cui Chengxiu nodded and said, "I will remember this merit for you. Since it is this Wei Dazhong stirring up trouble, then let us have him removed."

Having said this, Cui Chengxiu turned his head to look at Ruan Dacheng and asked, "If Wei Dazhong is removed, are you confident in taking control of the Shoushan Academy?"

Hearing these words, Ruan Dacheng knew his opportunity had come.

Ruan Dacheng said, "On this you may rest assured, there will certainly be no problem."

Cui Chengxiu nodded, pondered briefly, then said, "This matter cannot be blown out of proportion, and we certainly cannot have Wei Dazhong arrested over it. If people are arrested over this matter, then things will have gotten too big."

Ruan Dacheng also nodded in agreement and said, "That is indeed so. You must know that there are still many foolish people in this world. If the matter were blown up and the court arrested Wei Dazhong, it would instead provoke a backlash from these people. At that time, they would surely seize the opportunity to make trouble. And behind them there would inevitably be someone fanning the flames. If it came to that, I fear it would be troublesome."

Cui Chengxiu nodded and said, "Indeed it is so. Therefore we must think of a way to have Wei Dazhong arrested quietly, without a sound."

After thinking for a moment, Cui Chengxiu asked again, "Do you have a good plan?"

"It is actually simple." Ruan Dacheng stroked his beard and said, "Whether it is the Shuntian Prefecture or the Embroidered Uniform Guard, as long as someone makes a move it will be done. Find any pretext—even having someone pick a fight with Wei Dazhong would do, or having someone pass word to him. Have him arrested, but do not use too great a charge, or it will instead draw attention. Moreover, false accusations rebound upon the accuser—the one who lodges the complaint would also be implicated, and that would not be good."

"As long as Wei Dazhong is arrested and held for ten days to half a month, the matter will have passed. Once the Shoushan Academy reform is complete, he can be released. By that time, whatever he does will be too late—he can only obediently accept his fate. If he still wants to make trouble, then he can be arrested and punished without leniency."

Hearing Ruan Dacheng's words, Cui Chengxiu smiled and said, "Indeed it is so. Though such treacherous men, for their own private gain and even disregarding the great righteousness of the state, truly deserve severe punishment without leniency—yet for now the greater situation takes precedence, so we can only let him be for the moment."

"My lord is wise." Ruan Dacheng flattered.

"Excellent. I will go make the arrangements at once, and you should return as well. Once Wei Dacheng has been arrested, I will immediately go to the Shoushan Academy to discuss matters with you, and we will settle everything then. As long as the Shoushan Academy reform is completed, the other academies will naturally have no problems. At that time, this official will recommend you to His Majesty."

"Then I shall thank Lord Cui in advance. With that, I shall take my leave." Ruan Dacheng stood up and said respectfully.

Cui Chengxiu nodded, then stood up and made a gesture of invitation.

"This official will see you out. Normally I would keep you for a meal and drinks, but since the matter is not yet accomplished, we should not be too conspicuous. Once it is done, I will surely hold a celebration for you at the finest restaurant in the capital."

"By then it should be I who hosts you, my lord." Ruan Dacheng smiled as he walked out, speaking in a respectful tone.

Deep within the imperial palace.

Zhu Youxiao lay in a rocking chair, gently swaying.

Beside him stood Chen Hong, making his report.

"Ruan Dacheng." Zhu Youxiao muttered this name, then smiled and said, "Truly, those destined to rise will rise whenever the time comes. He certainly knows how to seize an opportunity."

Chen Hong stood at Zhu Youxiao's side, not quite understanding why His Majesty said this, but not daring to ask.

After a moment of silence, Zhu Youxiao continued, "Just have the Embroidered Uniform Guard keep an eye on him. Do not meddle in this matter. If anything happens, we will deal with it then. Cui Chengxiu does have ability—he will not botch this."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Chen Hong hastily acknowledged.

Zhu Youxiao thought for a moment, then turned to Chen Hong and said, "Have someone look into the matter of the potatoes. Is there any result yet?"

What Zhu Youxiao cared about most was still the expansion of grain production.

The days of the Great Ming would grow increasingly difficult. As the glacial period approached, the pace of global cooling would accelerate.

Thinking of how later generations worried about global warming while he himself worried about global cooling, Zhu Youxiao smiled wryly at himself.

Not only would earthquakes, droughts, and other natural disasters become frequent across the land, but most importantly, with global cooling, the weather throughout the entire region north of Beijing would turn bitterly cold, and north of the Yangtze, grain yields would drop because of the lengthened winters. In some years, heavy snow would seal the doors and simply beat the grain crops down into the fields.

As the weather turned colder and winters grew longer, the growing season for plants would shorten. Often before the plants had matured, the weather would already turn cold, and the green seedlings would be frozen to death in the fields.

At that point, grain would certainly not be enough. So crops with short growing cycles had to be promoted—soybeans, potatoes, sweet potatoes—these were the best crops.

Of course, there was also rye. This thing was cold-resistant and drought-resistant, with low demands on the soil—one could say it was a very good crop.

Only, rye might not taste very good. But when people were starving, being able to eat one's fill was already good enough—would they still consider whether it tasted good?

The seeds had not yet been obtained, but steps were already being hastened. Zhu Youxiao believed they would be obtained soon.

If they truly could not be obtained, then he would go take them himself.

Once Liaodong was taken, he would send men north to fight. After all, in the Russia of later generations, there was plenty of rye.

Hearing Zhu Youxiao's question, Chen Hong hastily said, "Your Majesty, in many places the potatoes have long since been planted, and they are now growing vigorously. I believe that in a little over a month they will be ready for harvest."

"More is planted in the capital region, and there are also plantings in various provinces like Hebei and Henan, though the quantities are relatively small and it hasn't spread very quickly. But after this year's harvest, I believe it will spread quickly enough."

Zhu Youxiao nodded. His efforts had not been in vain.

Once the potatoes spread, there would be far fewer starving refugees—at least they would have something to eat.

As for what couldn't be eaten, it could be made into vermicelli noodles. There was always a way.

"At the imperial estates, the corn has been planted as well, right?" Zhu Youxiao looked at Chen Hong and asked once more.

"Yes, Your Majesty, it has already been planted." Chen Hong answered hurriedly.

"Be diligent and have people keep an eye on it. If anything comes up or there are problems, come report to me as soon as possible." Zhu Youxiao nodded and said.

Up to now, nothing concerned Zhu Youxiao more than food.

For the Great Ming, there was nothing more important than grain.

As long as there was grain, everything else mattered less.

Without agriculture, there is no stability. What the Great Ming needed now was stability, so more grain had to be planted.

Opening his eyes, Zhu Youxiao asked again: "It should be about time, shouldn't it? Qi Jin should be arriving soon?"

"Judging by the time, it should be about right. He ought to have arrived by now." Chen Hong replied.

Then, he asked: "Shall this servant go take a look?"