Chapter 78: The Family Banquet

After delivering these resounding, forceful words, Chongzhen continued: "Before this great hall stand twelve kneeling statues. Among them are Zhonghang Yue, Qin Hui, and that dog of a Han traitor, Fan Wencheng!

We do not fear being written down in the histories as a tyrant. Today We tell you plainly: We have already ordered Fan Wencheng to be cast in molten iron into this kneeling statue, to serve as a warning for all future Han traitors!"

After delivering these resounding, forceful words, Chongzhen led the civil and military officials away.

Yet after Chongzhen departed, the commoners who remained were like water poured into a pot of already boiling oil — they instantly erupted.

The crowd buzzed with whispered discussion, but the expressions on a few faces were far from ordinary.

One strange-featured man — the very same who had slapped a scholar at Xuanfu — had a child of six or seven at his side. He said to the child: "Come, we're going home. Pack up, and we'll head for Liaodong."

The child, a sharp-witted one, whispered: "Father, aren't we going to prepare that... thing?"

The man replied: "No. This Son of Heaven loves his people. The Zhu clan's realm deserves to last ten thousand years. We'll call up our men and go to Liaodong to join Mao Wenlong. Winning a future in the army is just as good."

The child was remarkably sensible. Hearing this, he asked no more, merely nodded, and followed the man as they departed together.

Two others — a scholar and a brawny man — kept their eyes fixed dead on Fan Wencheng's kneeling statue. One of them ground his teeth and said: "Let's go. We're heading back!"

With that, unlike the other commoners who went to spit on the kneeling statues, the two turned together, squeezed out of the crowd, and went straight back to their inn.

Once back at the inn, the scholar said in a low voice to the brawny man: "No need to search any further this time. Sir Fan is now kneeling inside that Loyalty Shrine. You and I will return to Liaodong at once and report to the Great Khan."

The brawny man spat and cursed under his breath: "That dog-fucking barbarian emperor! Truly brutal beyond measure! Now I'll have to go back and suffer the Great Khan's reprimand."

Hearing this, the scholar laughed and said: "Is this not for the best? Such a tyrant is certain to lose the people's hearts. When our Great Jin warriors enter the pass, the common folk will surely welcome the royal army with baskets of food and pots of drink."

The brawny man grunted in assent, but inwardly he cursed: This low-born Han dog — always 'our Great Jin, our Great Jin' with everyone. You need to understand, this Great Jin belongs to us Manchus, not to a Han dog like you!

Though he cursed inwardly, his face revealed nothing. The two began packing their things, preparing to leave the capital and return to Liaodong.

Even as these people, each harboring different intentions, went their separate ways to carry out their business, the Chongzhen Emperor, having returned to the Forbidden City, bathed and rested, gathering his energy for the evening's "family banquet."

When evening came, the various feudal princes from the provinces all arrived at the palace.

The princes' consorts were all entrusted to the hospitality of the Tianqi Emperor's Empress Zhang and the Chongzhen Emperor's Empress Zhou, while the princes themselves accompanied Chongzhen in drinking and feasting.

After three rounds of wine, Chongzhen clapped his hands, and the singing and dancing halted at once. Once the troupe of musicians and the dancing palace maids had all withdrawn, Chongzhen signaled to Wang Cheng'en.

Only when every palace maid and eunuch in the hall had withdrawn outside, leaving Wang Cheng'en alone, did Chongzhen turn his gaze to the feudal princes assembled in the hall.

The many princes thought to themselves: Here it comes. They knew Chongzhen had something to say, though none could guess what sort of trick he might pull.

Sure enough, Chongzhen began: "In this hall sit some who are Our uncles, some who are Our brothers, and some who are of Our sons' and nephews' generation.

Today, We have some words from the bottom of Our heart that We wish to speak. At this moment, there are no outsiders in this hall. Whatever is said is a matter for our family alone."

The princes all exchanged polite courtesies, each expressing that he would surely rally closely around Chongzhen and be a patriotic, good feudal prince.

Chongzhen paid them no heed and simply asked: "We have a question in Our heart that We wish to put to all Our uncles and brothers.

For what purpose did the Hongwu Emperor, our dynastic founder, enfeoff the various princes?"

The princes looked at one another, none able to fathom what Chongzhen was thinking.

In truth, according to Zhu Yuanzhang's design, the provincial feudal princes were all meant to have soldiers and generals under their command. The notion of the "border princes" was no jest.

For example, before the Yongle Emperor, Zhu Di, launched his Jingnan campaign, he was one such prince, enfeoffed as the Prince of Yan.

In Old Zhu's thinking, each border prince held power over a region. Even if one day an emperor of the Great Ming dropped the ball so badly the dynasty faced ruin, the border princes could rise to rescue the throne.

Even if a border prince, after rescuing the throne, made himself emperor — well, wasn't the meat still rotting in the same pot? In the end, the realm would still be the Zhu clan's realm.

What Old Comrade Zhu failed to foresee, however, was that not long after his death, the Jianwen Emperor, Zhu Yunwen — that imbecile who'd been talked into a stupor by the civil officials — would try to revoke the princedoms.

That was what provoked Zhu Di's Jingnan campaign, by which he conveniently seized the realm from his own nephew's hands.

Only, after Zhu Di became emperor, his thinking aligned with the Jianwen Emperor's: he felt the feudal princes' power must not be too great, or else he would not sleep soundly.

The most direct consequence was that the feudal princes everywhere were raised like pigs. Aside from seizing commoners' fields and chiseling away at the Great Ming's state coffers, they could do nothing else worth a damn.

They could neither serve as officials nor command troops. So, in short, the princes devoted themselves single-mindedly to making babies. The result was that a huge portion of the Great Ming's treasury went to feeding these pigs.

Of course, these princes understood perfectly well what was going on. Some had no desire to live their whole lives as pigs, but none dared speak plainly — for fear the emperor might think they, too, wished to emulate Zhu Di and stage a Jingnan of their own.

Seeing that none of the princes would make a sound, all playing the trick that silence is golden, Chongzhen laid the matter bare: "The Hongwu Emperor, our dynastic founder, established the feudal prince system with the original intent that the various princes would shield and guard the court.

Yet when the Jianzhou barbarians breached the passes and besieged the capital — at that time, all you uncles and brothers, what were you doing?"

At these words, the princes hurriedly fell to their knees in a great rustling wave, crying in unison: "Your servants are guilty! Your servants deserve death ten thousand times over!"

But this was precisely the attitude Chongzhen detested most. He simply flicked his sleeve and said: "All of you, rise."

Once the princes had all risen, Chongzhen turned to the Heir Apparent of the Prince of Tang, Zhu Yujian, and said: "By seniority, We should address you as Imperial Grandfather. We merely wonder — what were you doing at that time?"

Zhu Yujian, whose age was not far from Chongzhen's own, had a face that could be called handsome and refined, yet Chongzhen's single sentence turned it deathly pale. He stammered: "Your servant... your servant... your servant is guilty!"

It turned out that when the Jianzhou barbarians besieged the capital, Zhu Yujian had dispersed some of his family wealth, seeking to recruit troops and march to the capital to rescue the throne.

After the barbarian siege was lifted, the Embroidered Uniform Guard had reported this matter, but Chongzhen had suppressed it.

Thus, the court remained wholly ignorant of it — otherwise, memorials impeaching the Heir Apparent of the Prince of Tang would long since have filled the skies.

Yet ever since Zhu Di's time, which feudal prince had dared recruit troops? Did he wish to rebel? Zhu Yujian therefore believed his actions had been exposed and that Chongzhen meant to hold him accountable.

Unexpectedly, Chongzhen said: "We have heard that Imperial Grandfather recruited troops. In Our heart, We were greatly pleased."

By the Mandate of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: Changkongzhe, who devotes his heart wholly to the affairs of state, is reverent and diligent beyond measure. His rewarding of an Alliance Master greatly accords with Our will. He is hereby enfeoffed as the First Adorable Master in History. Thus decreed!

(End of Chapter)