Chapter 18: The Rising Sun, Shining Brightly in the East

As the saying goes: 'He who stays near vermilion gets stained red; he who stays near ink gets stained black.'

Physician Chen Shigong, who had been dealing with the monsters of the Great Ming for many years, naturally became a monster himself after dealing with them for so long.

Of course, Physician Chen would also comfort himself: The Emperor said it was all for the medical science of the Great Ming!

One must be good at compromising with oneself.

Zhu Yijun originally wanted to see Chen Shigong's dissection technique, especially the appendectomy surgery of this era. This was indeed rare. How to anesthetize, how to cut open the heart and lungs, how to suture, how to disinfect, how to clean the wound and change the dressing—that the Great Ming could do such things in the Wanli years made Zhu Yijun naturally curious about how Chen Shigong managed it.

However, seeing Zhang Juzheng's fiery eyes, Zhu Yijun decisively chose to return to the palace to practice martial arts.

If the little Emperor kept watching, Zhang Juzheng might perform a kowtow and remonstrate directly. It was just a small matter; why kowtow until his head banged loudly, acting as if the world were about to perish?

Isn't it just watching how to dissect?

Zhu Yijun wasn't afraid of Zhang Juzheng's nagging; he was afraid that because the Emperor insisted on watching the dissection, the Dissection Institute would be disbanded, which Zhu Yijun could never accept.

After returning to the palace, Feng Bao selectively reported the events outside the palace, omitting the words he had said to the little Emperor.

The Emperor's decree to him was not to let the Empress Dowager worry. As a Grand Eunuch, the first thing to do was to accurately understand the Emperor's intentions and grasp the key points so that he could remain a Grand Eunuch for a long time.

So, the image of the sunny, cheerful little Emperor needed to be maintained by Feng Bao in his reports, bit by bit. Some content that should be omitted had to be omitted, some should be covered up with 'spring and autumn' brushwork, and some things that should be highlighted should be described with emphasis.

Feng Bao said respectfully: "When the suspect was trembling with fear, the Emperor said to Physician Chen: 'May the four seas and eight directions all be bathed in the virtue of the Sage of Medicine; reaching the heavens and the earth, sharing the grace of the Great Physician. Bringing the people to longevity and health, and summoning harmony to the universe!'"

"Empress Dowager, this is the Emperor's grand wish to bestow virtue upon the people!"

"Senior Grand Secretary Zhang's expression became complex on the spot as he looked at the Emperor, filled with more anticipation. The officials whispered to each other, mostly discussing this sentence. Both civil and military officials inside and outside the court are looking forward to a wise master to revive the court's discipline."

"Physician Chen knelt to receive the decree, inheriting the lineage of the Sage of Medicine. I imagine that in the future, he will definitely achieve something."

Feng Bao didn't want to leave a worse impression in the Emperor's mind. He had previously had insubordinate behavior. If his impression became even worse, wouldn't he be sent to the Dissection Institute? That would be worse than death.

Today, the Emperor was like a little King of Hell, saying the most ruthless words with the sunniest smile.

"Hmm, this Wang Zhanglong is truly detestable, a villain who treats human life like grass. Beheading and displaying the head is indeed too cheap for him. Sending him to the Dissection Institute is indeed appropriate." Empress Dowager Li was a palace maid by origin and knew the suffering of the people. If there were any other way, which parents would have the heart to send their children into the palace?

Once inside the palace gates, it is as deep as the sea; from now on, the high walls cut off the red dust.

Wang Zhanglong killed a family of three in his hometown, was a horse bandit in Shandong, and was addicted to gambling and theft after entering the capital. Sending him to the Dissection Institute was immediately acceptable.

Empress Dowager Li didn't want the child to see blood, but the child going to the Dissection Institute allowed the court officials to see the Emperor's character. The Emperor was not a cowardly person.

What if there was an assassination attempt? The Emperor still had the courage to go to the Dissection Institute personally, and the Emperor still saw the assassin personally.

That rebellious subject Wang Zhanglong, who was tough-mouthed at first, was reduced to incoherence by the Emperor's few words, with only the option of begging for mercy.

Imperial prestige is weak, but imperial prestige is accumulated bit by bit in these small details.

"Where did that sentence 'four seas and eight directions, reaching the heavens and the earth, bringing the people to longevity and health, summoning harmony to the universe' come from?" Empress Dowager Li asked, feeling a bit strange. How could her ten-year-old son say such things?

"It comes from *Simple Prescriptions for Hygiene* written by Hu Ying, the Minister of Rites during the Yongle to Jingtai years. The head of the Imperial Academy of Medicine cited this sentence in a memorial regarding the Dissection Institute. The Emperor saw this memorial while listening to the government in the Wenhua Hall today. I imagine he felt it was applicable and remembered it," Feng Bao hurriedly said.

After returning to the palace, Feng Bao was also surprised. The words were extremely well-structured. Was this something a ten-year-old child could say?

He had the small eunuchs of the Directorate of Ceremonial search for the source and found that the sentence was in the memorial of the Imperial Academy of Medicine, and this memorial was on the imperial desk today.

"The palace maids who went out of the Qianqing Palace to purchase goods once heard rumors in the streets: 'Ten-year-old Emperor, reads books for six months, only flips through without looking, illiterate.'"

"Hmph, it must be those classics lecturers who were talking nonsense to their servants at home. They didn't teach well, so they blame the Emperor for not being naturally intelligent. Is it that they taught poorly, or that the Emperor didn't read well?" Empress Dowager Li was furious when she mentioned this prophecy.

The palace maids who went out to purchase goods discussed this prophecy, and Empress Dowager Li heard it.

Empress Dowager Li couldn't ask clearly. After all, the Emperor's reading was indeed not very good. Asking would only be self-humiliating. Not asking made her angrier the more she thought about it.

Now, this breath of anger was finally smoothed out.

Feng Bao said angrily: "What kind of talk is that! The Emperor has natural wisdom. Pointing fingers at the imperial carriage is a crime of great disrespect! When I find out who it is, I'll tear their mouths apart!"

Empress Dowager Li waved her hand with a smile and said: "There is no need at all. Right and wrong are judged by people. Now, the ones losing face are those ministers."

Now it was good. Every word the Emperor said had a structure. Before, the classics lecturers couldn't teach him, but Zhang Juzheng taught him and he learned it immediately?

Whose problem it was, was self-evident.

The haze that had been shrouding Empress Dowager Li's heart finally slowly dissipated. Now, only one dark cloud remained: her son was practicing martial arts, which seemed a bit neglectful of his proper work.

Zhu Yijun was practicing martial arts very earnestly. He needed to protect himself. His six-year-old nephew in later generations knew one sentence.

Only by living can you have output!

Zhu Xixiao was very satisfied with Zhu Yijun's progress in martial arts. The other little eunuchs who were forced to accompany him were cautious and serious.

But the Emperor was training actively. Zhu Xixiao looked at the little Emperor covered in sweat, and in the depths of his heart, a tiny bit of expectation suddenly arose: could the Great Ming produce another Emperor who rules from horseback?

As soon as this extravagant hope appeared, Zhu Xixiao immediately dispelled it. The Emperor's martial arts practice was just to have the ability to escape when facing an assassin. As a noble person by birth, why endure such hardship? Before long, the Empress Dowager would issue an imperial decree to stop the Emperor's martial arts practice.

Zhu Yijun didn't know what Zhu Xixiao was thinking. He was covered in sweat, but on this third day of martial arts practice, he finally stopped limping when he walked.

Youth is truly good.

He stood straight, bowed, and ended today's lesson.

The classics lecturer lectured, Zhang Juzheng lectured, and Zhu Yijun would bow slightly to show respect for his teacher. Was the martial arts teacher not a teacher?

Zhu Xixiao hurriedly returned the bow, wanting to offer a few words of praise, but he was truly uneducated and couldn't speak in flowery language. When civil officials flattered, they used rhyming chapters and could talk for three days and three nights without repeating themselves. In this regard, the military nobles truly couldn't compare.

"Mother." Zhu Yijun revealed his signature smile.

The sunny, cheerful little Emperor, with this smile and his slightly chubby face, was very deceptive.

"My son is excellent today. If you are tired from learning martial arts, stop," Empress Dowager Li said, feeling sorry for the child's hardship, and tried to persuade the Emperor to give up martial arts again.

Zhu Yijun shook his head and said: "The *Analects, Chapter of Tai Bo* says: Zengzi said: 'A scholar must be broad-minded and resolute, for his burden is heavy and his road is long. Is it not heavy to take benevolence as one's own responsibility? Is it not long to continue until death?'"

"The Senior Grand Secretary explained: 'Broad-minded and resolute' means being broad-minded and firm, so one can shoulder heavy responsibilities and go further, acting firmly to reach far."

"Fan Zhongyan of the Northern Song Dynasty once said: 'Be the first to worry about the world's worries, and the last to enjoy the world's joys.' To have grand ambitions for the world is called 'broad,' and to have only private interests in one's heart is to be narrow."

"To have a clear goal and persist in doing one thing, and to have a beginning and an end for every thing, is called 'resolute.' Having no determination in doing things leads to weakness, and doing things only halfway will cause one to lose the courage to face difficulties and become cowardly."

Empress Dowager Li nodded repeatedly as she listened. Zhang Juzheng was truly teaching diligently.

"And what is my son's interpretation?" Empress Dowager Li asked with great anticipation.

Zhu Yijun smiled and said: "The child asked the Senior Grand Secretary: What does 'broad but not resolute' mean? The Senior Grand Secretary replied: 'Without rules, it is difficult to stand. Being high-minded but low-skilled means one cannot accomplish anything. If one is in a high position in the temple, one becomes a person of empty talk, a person of pure talk, which misleads the country.'"

"The child asked again: What does 'resolute but not broad' mean? The Senior Grand Secretary replied: 'Being narrow and selfish, only seeking one's own interests. If one is in a high position in the temple, one becomes a traitor to the country. If those who govern people are all full of private interests but still determined, the nation is in great danger.'"

"The child asked the Senior Grand Secretary again: The billions of people support me alone, is the burden heavy? The Senior Grand Secretary replied: 'As heavy as Taishan.'"

"The child asked the Senior Grand Secretary again: The Great Ming's national situation is declining day by day, is the road long? The Senior Grand Secretary replied: 'The road is long and obstructed.'"

"The child interpreted this sentence: The billions of people in the world support me alone, so the burden is as heavy as Taishan, and I should have the world in my heart; the Great Ming's border defense is not peaceful and war is imminent, so the road is long and obstructed, and I should be firm in my guard."

"This is called: Billions support, the burden is heavier than the mountain; as long as one breath remains, this ambition will not slacken. Not broad and not resolute, one is just a cowardly weakling."

"The Senior Grand Secretary was silent for a long time and said: 'Your Majesty sees the sprout by seeing the subtle, and sees the end by seeing the beginning. I see the rising sun shining brightly in the east. How can I not exhaust my life, and as long as one breath remains, this ambition will not slacken!'"

Zhu Yijun said quite definitively: "The child keeps it in mind. Practicing martial arts is not very tiring, and it has its own fun."

"The child does not want to have no beginning and no end, not broad and not resolute, and be a coward."

Empress Dowager Li felt that her feeling sorry for her son's hardship in practicing martial arts was like committing a crime. Her not letting him be too tired had actually made the Great Ming Emperor become a coward. This gave her a sense of guilt for no reason.

"If my son doesn't mind being tired, then learn, learn." Empress Dowager Li made up her mind not to persuade him anymore. This made her feel as if she had become a demoness who harmed the country and the people, delaying the Great Ming Emperor from becoming a great talent.

"What else did you learn today?" Empress Dowager Li continued to examine his studies. Zhu Yijun explained the day's lesson again according to the narrative structure of classics, Zhang Juzheng's annotations, his own understanding, and Zhang Juzheng's evaluation.

The more Zhu Yijun spoke, the more strange he felt. Empress Dowager Li just listened but rarely evaluated. Was she examining his studies, or was she learning?

The little Emperor didn't delve into the difference, just treating it as a review of his studies to avoid failing the monthly exam and becoming a laughingstock. Neglecting his proper work was one thing, but he still had to pass the exams.

Empress Dowager Li was extremely gratified. Although the child practiced martial arts and seemed a bit neglectful of his proper work, his studies had not fallen behind.

Most importantly, Zhu Yijun's studies had been affirmed and recognized by the Senior Grand Secretary of the Great Ming.

Zhu Yijun was very fortunate that Empress Dowager Li agreed to settle the matter and keep the peace. Zhu Yijun had already prepared his rhetoric to persuade Empress Dowager Li, but Empress Dowager Li did not insist on making arrests, which made Zhu Yijun breathe a sigh of relief.

Dealing with the deeply rooted Shanxi Faction in the court was what mattered. ===== CHAPTER 19 =====

Zhu Yijun picked up a dish with his chopsticks and asked with a solemn expression, "What is this?"