Chapter 1014: One-Yuan Autocracy, I Alone Am Supreme

October 23rd, a day that drew the eyes of the masses, had arrived once again—the day the Great Ming Emperor went to the Quan Chu Hui Zhen Guan to cadge a meal.

Today, almost every gaze was fixed upon the Quan Chu Hui Zhen Guan, attempting to judge the Emperor's attitude from his actions.

Although Zhang Zhang Juzheng had recovered this time, his political life had reached its end.

The Emperor had been lying dormant for twenty years and had finally cast off this Regent hanging over his head. At this moment, the Emperor had absolutely no need to hide, for Zhang Zhang Juzheng's purge of the party had nearly crippled the Zhang faction.

Now, Zhang Zhang Juzheng was at his weakest; the Emperor no longer needed to tremble in fear under Zhang Zhang Juzheng's tyrannical might for the sake of the court's stability or the sake of the nation.

The court session on the 23rd concluded. In front of the Tonghe Gate, the imperial procession was already prepared; whether the Emperor would go out depended entirely on his own will.

"Your Majesty, the time has come." Feng Bao glanced at the pendulum clock in the corner; it was already ten in the morning. If they didn't go now, they wouldn't make it in time to dine at the Quan Chu Hui Zhen Guan today. Offering this reminder was the Emperor's command; after all, the Emperor was very busy, and he, this Old Ancestor, had to arrange the scheduled itinerary.

Feng Bao dared not, and could not, disobey. He also couldn't be certain if the Emperor would go, because sunk costs do not participate in major decision-making.

All past actions would not have too much influence on major decisions. This was what Shen Shen Shixing and Lin Lin Fucheng had seen in Songjiang Prefecture and Lu Song; this was not the result of emotionality.

When people make investments, they all hope for an expected return—it could be labor, technology, management talent, or power concessions, etc. Tangible and intangible investments all require an expected return.

Only when the expected value is greater than zero will one participate in major decision-making.

Sunk cost is capital whose current asset value is zero. Zhang Zhang Juzheng was that asset whose current value had already trended toward zero. His expected return, compared to the massive investment, was even negative, so Zhang Zhang Juzheng would gradually be viewed as decision noise.

To put it bluntly, the moment had arrived to put away the bow once the birds were gone.

It was time to squeeze dry the last bit of Zhang Zhang Juzheng's residual value and push him out to bear all the infamy. Just like Shang Yang's reforms—in the end, Shang Yang could not find peace even after death, being torn apart by five chariots.

Decision noise does not participate in major decision-making; for non-major decisions, people might make some inclinations within an emotional range.

Maintaining Zhang Zhang Juzheng's lofty status required consuming the imperial prestige that the Emperor had painstakingly accumulated.

In fact, choosing not to go at this moment was, for His Majesty, the correct answer.

Within a limited and controllable scope, allowing court officials to launch a liquidation of all of Zhang Zhang Juzheng's policies and correct some of Zhang Zhang Juzheng's mistakes also conformed to the basic development logic of the negation of the negation.

Contradictions are always rising and falling; this rise and fall is the negation of the past. This negation can better perfect policies and allow for constant upward development.

For example, Ling Ling Yunyi partially negated the excessive personal favors of the Duke of Wencheng, Wang Wang Chonggu, thereby perfecting the official factory system and giving birth to the equity system and the Workers' Alliance.

But the key to the problem was, was Wang Wang Chonggu's posthumous affair any less than Zhang Zhang Juzheng's? Limited and controllable? Once this opening was made, could it still be controlled by the Emperor?

"Good." Zhu Zhu Yijun finished processing the last memorial in his hand, stood up, took a few memorials from the bookshelf and placed them in his sleeves, and walked toward the Great Imperial Carriage in front of the door.

The Emperor suddenly stopped his steps and said, "Feng Feng Da Ban, like the ministers, are you expecting that I won't go to the Quan Chu Hui Zhen Guan today?"

Feng Bao shuddered violently. In a flash of lightning, his thoughts gathered into a thousand strands, eventually converging on the fact that His Majesty did not like to hear lies. He bowed his head and said, "This servant helped the Senior Grand Secretary drive away Gao Gong back then. If Your Majesty does not go, this servant can only go to Fengyang to farm."

His Majesty's attitude was truly important; it directly influenced the judgment and characterization of Zhang Zhang Juzheng and the Emperor Wanli Reforms—was it Zhang Zhang Juzheng usurping power and acting as regent, or was it that the Great Ming had to be broken before it could be rebuilt?

If His Majesty chose not to go at this moment, then all the efforts made inside and outside the Great Ming over the past twenty years for the Great Ming's resurgence would all become a joke. How then should the Shrine of Heroes at Xishan be treated?

"Depart for the Quan Chu Hui Zhen Guan." Zhu Zhu Yijun walked out with a dragon-like stride, boarded the Great Imperial Carriage, and headed toward the Quan Chu Hui Zhen Guan.

"Depart!" Seeing that the Empress and the Crown Prince had boarded and were seated securely, Feng Bao immediately raised his voice and shouted.

Pairs of young eunuchs passed down the imperial edicts layer by layer. The avoidance signs and clearance signs were raised. Palace eunuchs lifted the imperial canopy to shade the Great Imperial Carriage. Zhao Zhao Mengyu rode a tall horse at the very front, clearing the way for His Majesty, with two hundred Embroidered Uniform Guards protecting the Emperor's surroundings.

The Embroidered Uniform Guards in full steel armor each held a large shield in their hands, carried a hook-and-sickle spear, and had various types of flintlock guns slung on their backs.

The procession was very long. Anyone who wasn't blind knew that His Majesty the Emperor had made his choice and was going to cadge a meal at the Quan Chu Hui Zhen Guan again. It looked no different from any other day.

Zhu Zhu Yijun's carriage arrived at the Quan Chu Hui Zhen Guan. Zhang Zhang Juzheng was waiting respectfully in front of the door for the imperial arrival. The high threshold of the Quan Chu Hui Zhen Guan had already been removed, allowing the Emperor to walk as if on flat ground.

Along the way, Zhu Zhu Yijun inquired about Zhang Zhang Juzheng's physical condition, walking past the Nine-Turn Bridge, past the Chinese hackberry tree, and into the Zhao Wenchang Pavilion.

"Twenty years have passed; this tree has grown really well." Zhu Zhu Yijun stood under the Chinese hackberry tree. He remembered the past, when he held the blood-stained last words of the Duke of Cheng, Zhu Zhu Xizhong, and found Zhang Zhang Juzheng to discuss the scene of revitalizing the military. At that time, this Chinese hackberry tree was not yet thick.

Time is like a white horse passing a crack; twenty years have passed in a flash. The handsome Zhang Zhang Juzheng of those years now had a full head of white hair.

Zhang Zhang Juzheng looked at the burly Majesty, took out a memorial, presented it before the imperial throne, and said, "Your Majesty, this servant has been blessed by Heaven and is now physically unimpeded, but my energy is difficult to sustain. I ask Your Majesty to grant this servant's memorial to retire and return to my family."

Zhu Zhu Yijun looked at the memorial, set it aside, shook his head, and said, "Return to your family? Does the Master know how many pairs of eyes were staring when I came today? If I hadn't come today, they would dare to eat you alive tomorrow! A Senior Grand Secretary and Marquis of Yicheng who has lost his power cannot withstand their counter-attacks."

"Master, rest easy and enjoy your twilight years. It is my turn to shield you from the wind and rain."

Zhang Zhang Juzheng was old, but he was not stupid. He immediately understood the Emperor's plan: One-Yuan autocracy, I alone am supreme.

Only after Zhang Zhang Juzheng passed away would a new Senior Grand Secretary position be established. That is to say, the Emperor intended to take Zhang Zhang Juzheng's functions upon himself, which meant that His Majesty would be even busier.

Too busy to handle it—this was Zhang Zhang Juzheng's first thought, but he soon realized that His Majesty was in the prime of his life and could handle it.

"I originally intended to let Shen Shen Shixing enter the Cabinet, but during the court recommendation at the Zhao Wenhua Hall a few days ago, Shen Shen Shixing didn't pass. The ministers just happened to put Shen Shen Shixing in an awkward position; it is difficult for him to convince the masses." Zhu Zhu Yijun spoke of the court recommendation, the voting pattern intentionally cast by the ministers in the court.

This voting pattern looked like it was framing Shen Shen Shixing, but in reality, it was framing the Emperor.

"Although this servant is old and weak, I can still share the worries for Your Majesty." After hearing the process of the court recommendation, Zhang Zhang Juzheng knew that the ministers in the court could not accept the court producing another Senior Grand Secretary who had the final say.

Zhu Zhu Yijun smiled and said, "Master, just rest and recuperate. It's nothing more than spending a bit more effort."

"Master, Xiong Da has won a great victory in Japan!" Zhu Zhu Yijun handed Xiong Xiong Tingbi's victory report to Zhang Zhang Juzheng and told him about the situation in Japan.

Zhu Zhu Yijun said with a smile, "General Qi's judgment was correct. Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu cannot remove the nail that the Great Ming has driven into Japan, so they lack the strength to launch another war to invade Korea."

"I also intend to let Xiong Xiong Tingbi try. Whether he succeeds or not is not important; it will just serve as experience for him."

Zhang Zhang Juzheng analyzed the situation in Japan. After careful consideration, he said, "Your Majesty, how could Xiong Xiong Tingbi level the Divine Fire Flying Crows?"

The Great Ming had evaluated the lethality of the nine-jin cannons and the Divine Fire Flying Crows. Under the same manufacturing and usage costs, the lethality of the Divine Fire Flying Crows was equal to three times that of the nine-jin cannons, or even more.

Because this fire, once touched, meant certain death.

Burns are the most difficult external injuries to treat on the battlefield because the battlefield environment is very poor. After being burned, it is very easy to die from suppurative infection. Therefore, the Great Ming army giving the finishing blow to the Japanese pirates was an act of mercy, a way to let them find release. Even if the Great Ming army's accompanying medical officers provided rescue, they couldn't save them.

Previously, the Divine Fire Flying Crows were unstable, moving with the wind, and did not support being leveled. Now, after external modifications, they sacrificed range to greatly increase stability, but no one expected Xiong Xiong Tingbi to use them this way.

His murderous nature was a bit beyond Zhang Zhang Juzheng's expectations.

Leveling the Divine Fire Flying Crows would rapidly increase non-essential casualties during the war process to a level that both the enemy and ourselves could hardly bear, causing more civilian casualties, and finally turning a war with a just cause into an unjust war.

Zhu Zhu Yijun naturally understood Zhang Zhang Juzheng's meaning very well. He thought for a moment and said, "I don't see any problem. Xiong Xiong Tingbi allowed Yuan Zheng and Yuan Zhi to send envoys out of the city to negotiate, letting Sakai Tadatsugu retreat. It was he himself who refused to retreat. Since we are going to fight, we must fight with deterrence, so that Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu dare not test our edge lightly again."

"Injuring their ten fingers is not as good as breaking one. We must hit the Japanese pirates hard."

"Your Majesty is right." Zhang Zhang Juzheng thought it over and accepted the status quo. Xiong Xiong Tingbi's actions were indeed ruthless, but it was because the Japanese people didn't know what was good for them; he let them go, but they wouldn't leave, insisting on testing the Great Ming's mettle.

For such murderous karma, the Japanese people were entirely to blame.

"In complex terrain, the Divine Fire Flying Crows are even easier to use than nine-jin cannons because they are easy to transport. They may become a major weapon against mountain cities, not just in Japan, but in the war to pacify Bozhou, the Divine Fire Flying Crows also performed brilliantly." Zhu Zhu Yijun took out the Ministry of War's memorial and handed it to Zhang Zhang Juzheng.

The military is intuitive violence; it is the most precise and efficient killing machine of mankind. The military equipment and training of the military are always developing toward more efficient killing.

As a high-efficiency, low-cost, high-lethality incendiary weapon, the Divine Fire Flying Crows were widely used.

Zhu Zhu Yijun and Zhang Zhang Juzheng chatted for a long time, talking about his own thoughts and his own decisions, letting Zhang Zhang Juzheng check them over. After lunch, the Emperor headed toward the North Camp to continue inspecting the troops and horses.

At this time, Shen Shen Shixing, who was sitting in the Ministry of Personnel, was a bit restless. He didn't expect that his entry into the Cabinet would be so full of twists and turns. After thinking about it, he took a visiting card and had his secretary send it to the Ministry of Rites.

Shen Shen Shixing had some words that were uncomfortable to keep inside, and he had no one to tell them to. After thinking about it, he found Gao Zhu Qiyu.

Gao Zhu Qiyu was a bit strange when he received the visiting card, but in the end, he agreed. As the sun set, Shen Shen Shixing went to Gao Zhu Qiyu's official residence.

After three rounds of wine and five courses of food, Shen Shen Shixing told Gao Zhu Qiyu about the bitterness in his heart. He had stumbled all the way to the present, but he didn't expect that at the final step, he would be slow to step out.

One is confused when it concerns oneself, especially with such major events.

Gao Zhu Qiyu looked at Shen Shen Shixing's bitter appearance and said with a smile, "Back then, when I saw you, the top scholar, in the crowd, wearing red and touring the capital, you were truly high-spirited. Today, having reached this point, you are actually so anxious about personal gains and losses."

"You are just thinking too much. Whether you enter the Cabinet or not is up to His Majesty, not the ministers. Cabinet ministers and court ministers are completely different; it all depends on His Majesty's will."

"Even if the court ministers all agree, if His Majesty doesn't approve, no one can enter; likewise, even if the court ministers all disagree, if His Majesty approves, everyone must approve."

"His Majesty approves of you, so why are you so worried?"

"That is true." Shen Shen Shixing pondered Gao Zhu Qiyu's meaning. He found that he was thinking too much and too chaotically, and instead had drilled into a dead end.

He had actually thought about lobbying the ministers and giving up some benefits in exchange for their approval, but he didn't know if doing so was right, so he came to find Gao Zhu Qiyu.

After Gao Zhu Qiyu's reminder, Shen Shen Shixing suddenly realized that lobbying the ministers would make it even harder to convince the masses, and the road ahead would be even more difficult!

"I'm still curious, why did you come to me, a discarded disciple of the Zhang school, to pour out your bitterness?" Gao Zhu Qiyu poured wine for Shen Shen Shixing and asked curiously. Shen Shen Shixing didn't find others, but actually found him; he was Shen Shen Shixing's enemy.

"A discarded disciple of the Zhang school?" Shen Shen Shixing drank it all and shook his head, saying, "I cannot find the Master. The Master has exhausted all his strength to lift me to where I am today. If I find the Master, it means I am incompetent; I also cannot find people of the Zhang school. I am the party leader; if I show weakness, how can I be the party leader in the future?"

"After thinking about it, only you are left. Besides, you presided over the imperial examination. I don't know how the cheating in the imperial examination really was. When you came out of the examination hall, didn't you come directly to find me?"

"You can find me, so why can't I find you?"

"Makes sense." Gao Zhu Qiyu accompanied him for a cup.

He felt that Shen Shen Shixing was right. In fact, having reached their status as Ministers and Cabinet ministers, whether one was a discarded disciple of the Zhang school or not was no longer important. On the contrary, he, this enemy, was more reliable than those of Shen Shen Shixing's own people.

"Let's stop here with the wine; we can't drink anymore. There is an early court session tomorrow." Gao Zhu Qiyu stopped pouring wine, sealed it, and put it aside. The two didn't drink much—less than three taels each, and a bottle of national cellar wine still had a lot left.

Gao Zhu Qiyu asked with a frown, "Cabinet Minister Shen, His Majesty is going on a southern tour next year. Vice Cabinet Minister Ling will remain in the capital, and we will accompany His Majesty south. His Majesty will stay in Songjiang Prefecture and needs you to assist in solving the trend of extravagance in Jiangnan. Do you have any plans?"

"The Master once said that although the general direction will not change much within a certain period, the small directions contained in the general direction will change at any time. If one direction is blocked, it will turn to another direction. Accumulating little by little, dripping water turns into ice. These countless small changes in direction eventually lead to changes in the general direction."

"It seems that extravagance and the omnipotence of money don't have much impact, but if these small directions change too much, they will eventually change the general direction."

Gao Zhu Qiyu was talking about a section in the theory of contradictions. Some people who are not quick-witted, have shallow knowledge, and have few sources of information always feel that the general direction has changed suddenly. How did the atmosphere change suddenly?

In fact, it is not so. There is no sudden change. Quantitative changes lead to qualitative changes. The sudden change in the general direction is the accumulation of small directions.

Anyone's choice is affecting the change of the general direction.

"Money has indeed shown its omnipotence." Shen Shen Shixing immediately spoke of the main contradiction of this southern tour: the omnipotence of money is the root of the alienation of people by money.

Gao Zhu Qiyu leaned back in his chair, his brows almost twisted into a knot, and said with great worry, "Can relying only on loyalty, or benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and faith, resist the alienation of people by money? In Songjiang Prefecture, money can almost buy everything in the world!"

"People can be disciplined. Fan Yuanshan, the anti-corruption censor's wife, was disciplined. In just a few months, she changed from being frugal to wanting everything to be the same as others. Fan Yuanshan has His Majesty's waist token, so no one dares to act recklessly against him, but if it were someone else, how could they resist such continuous attacks?"

"The corruption of money can be surging, or it can be silent. Over time, people's standards of good and evil in their hearts will change. Having money is good, and being poor is evil. Under such circumstances, I am afraid the Great Ming will not last long."

"Watch your words! Watch your words!" Shen Shen Shixing regretted finding Gao Zhu Qiyu. This guy had become more and more outspoken recently. How could he say the Great Ming would perish? This was very incorrect, but this guy said it in a way that made people unable to refute.

Money is omnipotent, and a social consensus that the rich are good and the poor are evil is formed. I am afraid the Great Ming is about to become a monster that even it despises.

"There is a saying in Songjiang Prefecture: laughing at the poor but not at the prostitute. It is simply absurd." Shen Shen Shixing reached out to take the wine again. He felt he was very capable, but he couldn't solve this problem. He wanted to drink more, but Gao Zhu Qiyu wouldn't let him.

Laughing at the poor but not at the prostitute is a sign of material desires flowing, social customs declining, morality collapsing, and the collapse of propriety and music.

Prostitution is a kind of labor that sells flesh and dignity in exchange for labor remuneration. It looks no different from pulling a cart, carrying firewood, corvée labor, or dock workers. In social labor, everyone is selling labor and dignity.

But the act of prostitution is complete self-objectification, treating oneself as a commodity for sale, rather than the indirect sale of labor power.

Complete self-objectification, without self-knowledge or self-love—this is the social consensus of the rich being good and the poor being evil forming, a logic that seems correct, seems reasonable, but is absurd everywhere.

"Do you have any ideas? You are the one who is going to be the Senior Grand Secretary! Do you have no ideas at all?!" Gao Zhu Qiyu thought for a long time and found that he had no good strategy, so he put pressure directly on Shen Shen Shixing!

You are going to be the Senior Grand Secretary; if you can't even solve this, what kind of Senior Grand Secretary are you!

"Don't say that, I really have some ideas." Shen Shen Shixing sat up straight and said, "Clothing, food, housing, and transportation."

"Hmm?" Gao Zhu Qiyu was stunned. He moved his stool closer to Shen Shen Shixing and said, "Tell me in detail."

"Clothing, food, housing, and transportation are necessities of life. If the prices of these four things are kept within a reasonable range, the scholars of Sun Hongyi will naturally be able to resist the alienation of money." Shen Shen Shixing stretched out four fingers and said, "Xishan Coal Bureau for fuel; cotton mills for clothing; official residences of the official factories for housing; and the paved roads for transportation."

"Look, the court ministers have distinct and completely different views on official residences."

"Officials below the fifth rank can't wait to raise their feet to support His Majesty. It is not easy to live in the capital; housing is expensive, and schooling is even more expensive. These official residences solved the urgent need at once. But officials above the fifth rank don't say it, but they are cursing in their hearts, feeling that His Majesty is meddling too much."

"I have looked at it, and to resist the alienation of money, we must start from these four aspects. Maintaining flat prices is the key."

People regard food as their heaven, and the most expensive cost in food is fuel. For the sake of fuel, mountains have been cut bare for thousands of years. Shen Shen Shixing saw hope in the Emperor Wanli Reforms. The alienation of money can be resisted, resisted from the material level.

"Morality is class morality. When people are hungry and have no clothes, they have no choice. They must accept this alienation, either by being a tiger's accomplice or by becoming the food of the evil tiger. The court must try every means to give people a choice."

Shen Shen Shixing continued, "Taking Fan Yuanshan's previous hunting as an example, before getting the official residence deed, he seemed to have no choice."

"Compromise seemed to be his only way out, but he still held on. After getting the deed, facing Miss Lin, he was more at ease, instead of being forced to accept it."

"You are right! You are right!" Gao Zhu Qiyu's eyes lit up, but soon dimmed. He shook his head and said, "Difficult."

"Yes." Shen Shen Shixing said immediately.

The two were speechless. Gao Zhu Qiyu opened the wine, filled it for Shen Shen Shixing and himself, and the two drank another cup, still without a word.

Shen Shen Shixing found Gao Zhu Qiyu because they were all for the resurgence of the Great Ming, comrades walking together and enjoying together. Although there were some contradictions and conflicts, they were all contradictions surrounding the resurgence of the Great Ming, not fundamental or line-based contradictions.

Gao Zhu Qiyu felt it was feasible, but his eyes dimmed because he knew that this matter was really difficult, really difficult to do.

Right now, there was a problem that Shen Shen Shixing could not solve. The Great Ming was reducing the collection of land taxes. Once land taxes were reduced, the court didn't feel much because the main revenue came from the growth of official factories and tariffs, but local Southern Yamen fell into an unprecedented fiscal crisis.

Land tax was almost the only source of income for local Southern Yamen. If land tax continued to decrease, local Southern Yamen would definitely turn their attention to clothing, food, housing, and transportation. For example, the Han Dynasty had the state monopoly on salt and iron, and salt tax was an important fiscal revenue from the Han and Tang Dynasties to the Great Ming. For example, the state monopoly on alcohol in the Northern and Southern Song Dynasties.

To solve the fiscal crisis of local Southern Yamen, not to mention anything else, just the word "housing" was enough.

Shen Shen Shixing wanted to give people the power of choice through the flat prices of clothing, food, housing, and transportation. This line of thinking was correct, but wanting to realize it was a bit like talking in his sleep.

The two looked at each other in silence, just feeling that the road ahead was blocked by a towering mountain.

"As difficult as ascending to heaven." Gao Zhu Qiyu sighed again.

Shen Shen Shixing thought for a moment and said, "Difficult or not, we have to do it, right? Let's try it and see. When the Master started the Emperor Wanli Reforms, he didn't think it would definitely succeed. Whether it can succeed or not, we will only know after trying."

"If we don't achieve it, we won't blame heaven or earth; we will blame ourselves for not doing it well."

Gao Zhu Qiyu poured wine again. After the two drank, Shen Shen Shixing chose to take his leave.

The next morning at the court session, after the ministers paid their respects, the Emperor announced the imperial edict for Shen Shen Shixing to enter the Cabinet. Shen Shen Shixing was promoted to Junior Preceptor of the Crown Prince and concurrently Minister of Personnel in charge of official governance. From then on, the fifty-seven-year-old Shen Shen Shixing was Cabinet Minister Shen.

This was within the expectations of the court ministers, but what was unexpected to them was that Zhang Zhang Juzheng really didn't return to the court, claiming illness to recuperate, but did not resign from any position.

Zhu Zhu Yijun took out a few approved memorials and said, "These seven things, do not pass through court discussion, implement them directly."

"The Ministry of Justice is to know: in the five provinces of Anhui, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, and Guangdong, strictly prohibit prostitution. From this day forward, all open and secret prostitution will be severely cracked down upon. First offense, labor education; second offense, exile to Nanyang. Likewise, strictly crack down on the human trafficking agencies in the above five provinces. If there is resistance, kill without mercy."

"This servant obeys the edict." Ling Ling Yunyi hurriedly stood up and bowed his head.

Zhu Zhu Yijun continued, "The Ministry of Rites is to know: the Dinghai School System is the fundamental great cause of the nation and the foundation of a century of prosperity. As for the training of accountants in various camps and manors, it involves the farmers of the masses. The capable will be promoted, and the mediocre will be dismissed. Six months of full-scale military training; those who cannot hold on will be released from their registers and returned to their hometowns, and will not be recorded again. If a person is not determined, nothing can be accomplished."

"Conduct assessments on the Great Academy and the Normal Academy. If the academic performance of the students is poor multiple times in three assessments, the mediocre will be dismissed and released from their registers; those who spread ghosts and gods or religious matters will be sentenced to labor education; those who dare to preach in the school will be sentenced to beheading, a capital crime that will not be pardoned; those who spread evil spirits such as the Extreme Joy Sect will be implicated along with their family members."

"Those who harbor or indulge will be punished with the same crime."

"We obey the edict." Shen Li and Gao Zhu Qiyu hurriedly stood up and bowed their heads to receive the order.

These were two things: assessments for students and assessments for the faculty of the Great Academy, increasing the elimination of mediocre talents and reducing the waste of national treasury. The Dinghai School System valued construction, but also valued maintenance. The Great Ming Emperor's rice did not feed fools.

Those who believe in religion will be sentenced to labor education, those who preach will be beheaded, and those who spread evil spirits will be implicated. These were three different specifications of punishment. The court didn't care what one believed in, but one could not eat the court's salary while engaging in preaching and acting recklessly.

"The Ministry of Works is to know: for land surveying and mapping, the estimates made by the Ministry of Works, the audits by the Ministry of Revenue, and the construction periods calculated, unless necessary, strictly prohibit early completion to prevent various accidents and ensure quality and quantity."

"This servant receives the edict." Zeng Tongheng stepped out of the ranks and bowed his head to receive the order.

"Cabinet Minister Lu, tell the censor officials who speak well: those who criticize the Master's mistakes will be beheaded. I have already warned you. The Master is seriously ill, so do not use this opportunity to stir up trouble. Do not blame me for being heartless."

"This servant obeys the edict." Lu Lu Guangzu hurriedly stepped out of the ranks to receive the order.

"The Ministry of War is to know: Provincial Governor Liang Liang Menglong and Regional Commander Liu Ting reported that Yang Yang Yinglong colluded with multiple Replace Tusi, which is why he was so bold and had the heart to rebel. Those who join together will all be punished for rebellion, and there will be no indulgence."

"This servant obeys the edict."

Zhu Zhu Yijun looked around at the group of ministers before continuing, "From this day forward, there will be no more regular court discussions. Cabinet ministers and ministers are to listen to orders and do things. As for the day when regular court discussions will be restored, listen to my edict. If there are urgent matters, I will naturally summon the department heads to discuss them. If ministers have urgent matters, they can come to the Tonghe Palace for an audience."

"Dismissed."

"Your Majesty..." Ling Ling Yunyi was stunned to hear that the regular court discussions were actually stopped. He hurriedly stepped out of the ranks. He was old, and for a moment, he was actually a bit speechless, because the regular court discussions established due to the young ruler and the nation's suspicion had stumbled all the way to the present, forming a complete decision-making logic.

It was actually going to be stopped?

"It will be restored in the future, Vice Cabinet Minister, do not worry." Zhu Zhu Yijun stood up, flicked his sleeves, and left the Zhao Wenhua Hall.

The Emperor's meaning was already very clear. Only after Zhang Zhang Juzheng passed away would the regular court discussions be restored. At this critical moment, the Emperor wanted one-yuan autocracy, I alone am supreme, until Zhang Zhang Juzheng passed away, until no one dared to scheme against Zhang Zhang Juzheng's posthumous reputation. ===== CHAPTER 1015 =====