Chapter 1561: A Particular Person

In the winter of the 54th year of Jiajing, Zhu Houcong passed away in the Longevity Palace. His temple name was Shizong, and his posthumous title was "Qintian Ludao Yingyi Sheng-shen Xuanwen Guangwu Hongren Daxiao Su Emperor."

Neither the temple name nor the posthumous title changed.

For the Jiajing Emperor, even though he changed history because of Wang Yan, allowing his imperial performance to be infinitely elevated and definitely occupying an important position in history, this temple name and posthumous title were enough to cover his coffin and conclude his life.

The temple name "Shizong" was a very positive one, meaning that the lineage started from here, opening the world from here, which was still very appropriate. On the other hand, the temple name was the temple name of the emperor's ancestral temple, the ancestor worshipped by later generations, and no one would get a bad temple name for their ancestors.

As for the posthumous title, "Qintian Ludao" referred to the legitimacy of the Jiajing Emperor's succession, "Yingyi Sheng-shen" was decisive and wise, "Xuanwen Guangwu" was naturally civil and martial achievements, and "Hongren Daxiao" was benevolence and filial piety. Filial piety was always a good quality, and emperors often added "filial" to their posthumous titles; not to mention the Jiajing Emperor had the "Great Rites Controversy."

"Su" was a beautiful posthumous title. "Firm virtue and overcoming" is called Su, "decisive heart and judgment" is called Su, "correcting oneself and taking in subordinates" is called Su. The Jiajing Emperor certainly didn't achieve it perfectly, but it was still okay.

The original posthumous title was a bit lacking for the Jiajing Emperor. But for the current Jiajing Emperor, it could be considered ordinary; it wasn't low, but it wasn't very high either.

As a firm imperial partisan, in the discussion meeting for the Jiajing Emperor's temple name and posthumous title, Wang Yan firmly sent many flowery words of praise to the Jiajing Emperor, fiercely debating with the scholars. In the end, because he was alone and Prince Yu wanted to end these messy things as soon as possible, the temple name and posthumous title were decided like this.

After burying the Jiajing Emperor, Prince Yu ascended the throne, and a series of things, as well as various personnel transfers and power struggles, unfolded with the new monarch's ascension. Prince Yu's people one by one stepped onto the historical stage, while many of Wang Yan's old acquaintances left.

"Eunuch Lu, Eunuch Huang, His Majesty is not necessarily unable to tolerate people. It's good to retire in the palace; why go out of the capital to suffer?"

Wang Yan walked slowly with Lu Fang and Huang Jin behind his back.

Lu Fang was also a man approaching seventy, and Huang Jin was approaching sixty. There were many things in the period before the Jiajing Emperor died, and both of them lost power after the Jiajing Emperor died. In this short period of time, they already showed signs of old age, feeling like candles in the wind.

Lu Fang waved his hand: "A new emperor, a new court. We are no longer useful, and the palace is not a kind place. We are all old, having served the Master for a lifetime, so we might as well go to guard the tomb and keep the Master company. It's you, it's truly hard for you to specially send us off; there will be no shortage of trouble later."

Huang Jin snorted: "Chen Hong, that dog thing, is truly narrow-minded and very vengeful. The current Majesty is muddled; how can he use such a villain?"

Chen Hong had long hooked up with Prince Yu, and now that the Jiajing Emperor had died, Chen Hong naturally ascended to the position of Director of the Directorate of Ceremonial, the number one person in the inner court.

Thus, Chen Hong began to actively suppress Lu Fang's old subordinates. Currently, it was just the beginning, only dealing with people in the capital. Later, all the various garrison eunuchs sent out would have to go through a big reshuffle.

This was also the reason why Longqing let Chen Hong take the position; this matter was exactly what Chen Hong could do well.

Clearly, Lu Fang understood this truth.

"You, manage this mouth well. Now that you and I have left the palace, those who remember the old feelings will give us some face, and those who don't will specifically make things difficult for you and me. What other way do you have?"

"They dare!" Huang Jin cursed, "A group of ungrateful wolves—don't they even follow the rules? Today they deal with us, tomorrow they will be even worse than us."

Wang Yan laughed: "Eunuch Huang's words are reasonable. Besides, isn't there me? We have known each other for many years and have helped each other a lot. Now that the two of you are leaving the capital, I must take care of you. From now on, if you have anything, just come to me; I will definitely do my best to help. This is not empty talk. As it seems now, the current Majesty still wants to use me, so as long as I have power in my hands, I can get things done. The two of you know my character best; I will definitely do what I say."

Without waiting for Lu Fang to speak, Huang Jin waved his hands repeatedly: "Forget it, I don't mind if I and the Old Ancestor suffer some difficulties; we can always wait until we die of old age. If you are affected because of us and offend the current Majesty, then you will have no place to be buried."

"He is right. You have not been easy all these years, so be careful. We two old things cannot cause you trouble. Otherwise, if you are really affected, we won't have the face to see the Master, the Ten Thousand Years Emperor, on the day we die."

"It's all given by the Zhu family, so it's only right to take it back." Wang Yan laughed, "Anyway, as long as I am used for one day, I will definitely work honestly for the Great Ming for one day."

"The Master being able to promote you is truly God's will." Lu Fang's words were full of emotion.

He looked at Wang Yan, who was thirty-four and almost unchanged, and in a trance, he saw the young man kneeling in the Jade Palace fourteen years ago. The scene at that time was still vivid in his mind.

"It's truly fast; fourteen years have passed in a flash." He sighed again.

"The days are so short, and a hundred years are easily filled." Wang Yan also had some melancholy.

Time was truly his closest partner. It brought him much, and also took away much...

Lu Fang looked at the steps in front of him, looking at the Taoist temple at the end of the steps, and said: "This is your first time coming to Chaotian Temple, right?"

"Yes, that Immortal Blue is a reasonable person. When I was the Prefectural Administrator of Shuntian Prefecture, he was the most cooperative and even took the initiative to persuade other Taoist temples and Buddhist temples, saving me a lot of trouble."

"Immortal Blue is afraid of being made into a rotten immortal." Huang Jin snorted, "Still an immortal; if he really had supernatural powers, could the Master have become an immortal?"

Lu Fang shook his head, stepped forward first, and climbed up slowly. Huang Jin hurriedly went to support him, his mouth still not stopping with complaints.

The Jiajing Emperor's death made Huang Jin very sad. What was shown was that he didn't look at anything pleasing to the eye and complained about everything.

Of course, he wasn't stupid. Only Lu Fang and Wang Yan were here, and they were all his own people. It didn't matter if he scolded the Emperor; after all, the Emperor wasn't really omniscient...

There were definitely outsiders, not to mention Wang Yan's title of "King of Resistance to Killing," which was famous outside. He had dozens of guards around him, some were warriors of the Jiliao border army who had retired to be his bodyguards, and some were guards arranged by the Eastern Depot and Embroidered Uniform Guard, all scattered everywhere.

In addition, there was his status and position, as well as the many things he had done in the past. Not to mention that the Jiajing Emperor was already dead, even when he was alive, when Wang Yan came to this Chaotian Temple, everyone in the temple had to come out to welcome him.

This was power...

Slowly arriving at the gate of the Taoist temple, led by the temple master, Wang Yan and others walked in, turned left and right, and saw a... madman...

This is power...

Slowly arriving at the entrance of the Daoist temple, under the guidance of the abbot, Wang Yan and the others walked inside, turning left and right, until they saw a... madman...

This madman was skin and bones, wearing a single layer of clothing as he ran in circles in the cold wind, muttering strange, nonsensical words. Something about the Wanshou Emperor, something about the Zhongxiao Emperor, something about Yang Jinshui, something about Zheng Bichang and He Maocai...

Lu Fang watched the madman silently, watched for a while, and said: "Speaking of which, you also know this person." 【15

"Listening to the names he recites, it is clear: he must be the Chief Eunuch of the Jiang Nan Manufacturing Bureau from back when the 'Converting Rice to Mulberry' policy was implemented, Eunuch Yang."

"Good memory; it is indeed him." Lü Fang nodded with a smile.

"It's not that my memory is good; it's that the 'Converting Rice to Mulberry' affair was a major turning point in my life." Wang Yan stood with his hands behind his back, his face full of melancholy. "I never intended to be a 'Blue Sky' official for the common people; I just wanted to comfortably rake in silver and live a smooth, pleasant life. Who would have thought that the 'Converting Rice to Mulberry' affair would end up making me the 'Blue Sky' magistrate in the mouths of the common people."

Lü Fang and Huang Jin both laughed out loud; they knew best how much silver Wang Yan had embezzled and how luxurious his life was, and they believed that what Wang Yan said was absolutely the truth.

Wang Yan felt no embarrassment at all, turning to instruct the abbot waiting nearby: "Why are you so lacking in awareness? Hurry up, get the man washed and groomed, find a thick set of clothes to tidy him up; Eunuch Lü will be taking him to guard the late Emperor's spirit."

The abbot hurriedly directed people to handle the task and had tea brewed for the three of them, but the guards intercepted, taking the water themselves and using their own tea leaves.

Lü Fang and Huang Jin clicked their tongues in wonder, saying he was no worse than the Jiajing Emperor's guards...

But in reality, they were still quite different; it was just a matter of paying attention to unseen places, as there were no other special defenses. When Wang Yan strolled down the street, although he was also surrounded by many guards, he would still walk into the crowds. When going down to inspect, he would personally interact and chat with grassroots officials and commoners watching the excitement.

After drinking tea for a while, Yang Jinshui was washed and groomed, changed into thick clothes, and followed Wang Yan and the others out of the temple, still acting mad.

"Alright, it's been fourteen years; what is there that can't be let go? Let's go guard the spirit of the Master, the Emperor." Lü Fang patted Yang Jinshui's shoulder. "From now on, you don't need to pretend to be mad anymore."

As the words fell, Yang Jinshui, who had been babbling, froze, and then tears flowed from his eyes as he began to sob...

Wang Yan said with a chuckle: "Eunuch Lü, Eunuch Huang, I have to say, Eunuch Yang is truly no ordinary person. If this were anyone else, it would be questionable whether they could have survived a dozen years, and even if they had survived, pretending to be mad for a dozen years would likely have turned them truly mad."

"It was all to stay alive." Lü Fang sighed. "It is also my fault; I should have begged the Emperor for mercy long ago, but I never found the opportunity to speak. You are a divine physician; I must trouble you to examine him and prescribe some medicine to recuperate."

"That is easily done; let's go."

The group left the temple and hurried to the imperial mausoleum in the suburbs.

There were people guarding the spirit here year-round, responsible for maintaining the surrounding environment and protecting the safety of the imperial mausoleum from outside disturbance. There were troops, eunuchs, and plenty of manpower.

Wang Yan escorted Lü Fang and the others to their destination, carefully observed their working environment, and chatted with the relevant persons in charge and the subordinates. He decided on the spot to allocate a sum of money to improve the living environment here and raise the work benefits for the people here.

After all this, he paid his respects to the Jiajing Emperor, stayed for one night, and the next day, Wang Yan bid farewell to Lü Fang and the others and returned to the capital.

His trip out of the capital this time was entirely to see Lü Fang off.

Truth be told, Lü Fang and Huang Jin were his political allies; they were all members of the Emperor's faction, and over these years, they had cooperated with each other to compete against Xu Jie and the others, cultivating a deep camaraderie of war.

On the other hand, Wang Yan also wanted to demonstrate his own sense of loyalty and righteousness.

If he hadn't come to see them off, Lü Fang, Huang Jin, and Yang Jinshui would certainly not have lived very well here. While they wouldn't have been excessively harassed, they certainly wouldn't have had it easy. Chen Hong did not have a large capacity for tolerance; having been suppressed for many years, he still held a grudge against Lü Fang. Even knowing he might have such a day himself, he still couldn't resist making things difficult for Lü Fang and the others.

But it was different now that Wang Yan had personally come to see them off, not to mention that he had promised on the spot to allocate funds to the imperial mausoleum to improve everyone's welfare. It was a simple, direct statement of support for Lü Fang, allowing Lü Fang to continue being the "Old Ancestor" here and enjoy his later years in peace.

And since Lü Fang and Huang Jin were destined never to rise again and had absolutely no chance of regaining power, if Wang Yan could do this much for such people, what about others?

Furthermore, there was a very clear example: Hu Zongxian. This former third-in-command of the Yan faction, who had been suppressed by Xu Jie and others due to the Yan faction's loss of power and was almost in a situation of certain death, had his life saved by Wang Yan, making it difficult for Xu Jie and the others to take action.

He then found an opportunity for Hu Zongxian to perform a great service, thereby getting him reinstated after Yan Song's death, starting as Vice Minister of Rites and concurrently Governor of Shuntian Prefecture, and later being sent out as Governor of Jiliao to lead the war to destroy the Tatars and expel the Oirats.

This fully proved Wang Yan's reliability; he was an absolutely good leader and a good ally. It made those who had already defected feel at ease, and made those who hadn't defected envious.

Having been in business for fourteen years, Wang Yan was now the big boss of a political faction; he was no longer the player who had been mocked by the Jiajing Emperor for being unable to be the Chief Grand Secretary...

Returning to the capital, before he could even rest his feet, he was called into the palace by people from the palace.

The Longqing Emperor had stepped onto the historical stage; if not for Wang Yan, he would have been dead long ago. But unfortunately, he did not know that Wang Yan had let the Jiajing Emperor live nine years longer. Influenced by this, Longqing was honest, cautious, and prudent, neither looking for trouble nor causing it, steadily muddling through with Xu Jie and the others. Plus, the Jiajing Emperor would often have Wang Yan adjust his health, so he had lived comfortably until now, and had even fathered several sons...

Wang Yan entered the imperial palace, turned to the West Garden, and saw Chen Hong waiting there with people.

"Oh my, isn't this Eunuch Chen? Now that the new Emperor has ascended the throne, there are many busy affairs; why are you here?"

Chen Hong smiled: "Isn't this waiting for you, Minister Wang? The late Emperor valued you, and the current one also trusts you. As the newly appointed Director of the Ceremonial Secretariat, I naturally should be closer to you. We haven't spoken in a long time; isn't this waiting for you today so we can go see the Master together?"

"Eunuch Chen is too polite; you and I were never distant. Those sweet potato and potato matters were all Eunuch Chen's credit; even now, those scholars doing research are still grateful to you, Eunuch."

"Hahaha, wasn't it all your idea? I was just following your orders."

"Hey, Eunuch Chen, why are you cursing? What 'following my orders'? That was you, Eunuch Chen, having the people and the Great Ming empire in your heart, willing to contribute your strength."

"Minister Wang speaks so well; it makes one feel comfortable to hear it. Let's talk as we walk; we dare not keep the Master waiting long. Please..."

Within the red walls, Wang Yan walked with his hands behind his back, chatting idly with Chen Hong as they walked inside...

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