[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-i-really-am-not-neglecting-my-duties":3,"chapter-i-really-am-not-neglecting-my-duties-i-really-am-not-neglecting-my-duties-chapter-28":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","I Really Am Not Neglecting My Duties",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2363297,4622,"Chapter 28","i-really-am-not-neglecting-my-duties-chapter-28",28,"\u003Cp>What is power?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Power is when you have a dream, and the next day it comes true—that is power.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Yijun was only ten years old; the emperor did not uphold the court’s discipline and had no authority whatsoever, yet power was power—he wished to train in martial arts, and so the hereditary military nobles and Embroidered Uniform Guard of the Great Ming trained him with the latest military methods; he wished to farm, and immediately over a hundred men cleared the Hundred Flower Garden on Jingshan, indulging the emperor’s whims.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Yijun noticed how diligently the young eunuchs worked: yesterday when he returned to the palace, the ground had just been transplanted with flowers, trees, and shrubs, deeply tilled and fertilized; today, every insect had been picked out, and several officials from the Ministry of Works were planning the Baoqi Hall, which, though called a hall, was merely a five-bay, nine-rafter structure—the real key project was the half-mu fire chamber.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fire chamber was jointly built by the Imperial Household’s Armory Bureau and the Ministry of Works to guard against late spring frosts, and it featured water channels for heating.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lighting was solved by a fully glass-covered design—the transparent glass Zhu Yijun knew, supported by a steel frame.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Records from the Sui and Tang dynasties already noted large-scale production of transparent glass, while the colored glass used in the palace was stained glass; for the many imperial workshops serving the court, producing fully transparent glass was merely waste.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This waste could be repurposed for the fire chamber.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To retain warmth against late spring frosts, thick straw mats were laid over the glass, which opened the young emperor’s eyes—construction required only three days, and this half-mu fire chamber would be the first marvel Zhu Yijun ever saw.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Great Ming’s fire chambers were far from this luxurious; only the emperor’s seedling chamber could afford such extravagance, yet even it was no more than half a mu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Zhen looked at the young emperor’s sparkling eyes and said: “The Analects says: ‘Do not eat unless it is in season.’ The Book of Han also says: ‘Things not in season harm people and should not be offered as tribute.’”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This means: do not eat what is not in season. Food not of its proper season requires the labor of countless people to obtain—it drains the people’s strength and should not be pursued for mere gustatory pleasure.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“During the Western Han, the Imperial Household’s Garden planted winter-growing scallions, leeks, and vegetables under covered roofs, burning fuel day and night to generate warmth, cultivating out-of-season crops in heated rooms.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“By the Northern Wei, they no longer lit fires indoors but dug tunnels and burned fires underground, which was inconvenient—the fire easily went out.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“During the Tang dynasty, Chen Yuanshou, the Prefect of Yizhou, built earthen chambers to grow out-of-season vegetables for tribute. Emperor Taizong wondered how fresh vegetables appeared in winter; Chen Yuanshou explained the earthen chamber’s construction. To his surprise, Emperor Taizong flew into a rage, rebuking Chen Yuanshou for exhausting the people’s strength to curry favor, and Chen Yuanshou was soon dismissed.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“During Empress Wu Zetian’s reign, she adored peonies, and warm chambers filled Chang’an and Luoyang for flower cultivation; they were abandoned during the Kaiyuan era but rebuilt during the Tianbao era to supply the imperial court with out-of-season fruits and vegetables.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Zhen paused here—he did not wish to squander Zhang Juzheng’s recommendation, so he had spoken too long. Had the emperor even read history? Could he understand what he was saying?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Keep going,” Zhu Yijun said, thoroughly engrossed, digging the foundation with a shovel tailored to his small frame; he gestured to Xu Zhen, who was digging beside him, to continue explaining.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Zhen continued: “By the Song and Yuan dynasties, such warm chambers had become extremely common. In the capital’s bitter winter, yellow sprouts and yellow leeks were supplied—grown by wealthy households in cellars, heated beds, and fire chambers. Yellow leeks were expensive, costing dozens of times more than regular leeks, with profits several times higher.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After listening, Zhu Yijun frowned and said: “Master Xu, from start to finish, you’ve only described how the extravagant rich grow things. How do ordinary people protect seedlings from late spring frosts?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Zhen quickly replied: “Yes, yes, yes—I saw farmers near Changping in the capital’s suburbs using sorghum stalks to make wind barriers, enclosing their fields and covering the soil with horse manure and wood ash to retain warmth and prevent frost damage.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Zhen explained a host of folk farming tricks; Zhu Yijun called Zhang Hong to bring pen and notebook and recorded every one of Xu Zhen’s tips.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For the first time, Zhu Yijun realized farming had so many subtleties.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For example: even when land was extremely fertile, farmers worked hard and applied abundant fertilizer, crops looked lush—but yielded little grain, because farmers didn’t know to cut off surface roots and trim side leaves to harvest properly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For example: when retrieving stored seeds from underground pits, never descend lightly—otherwise you’ll suffocate and die; first open the pit door, ventilate, then lower a lit candle—if it doesn’t go out, you may enter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Farming requires knowing the seasons, the soil’s nature, and what crops suit it; use limited conditions wisely, avoid adverse factors, align with the timing of heaven, the flow of earth, and the nature of things—power enough to overcome heaven!” Xu Zhen said, deeply stirred.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Power enough to overcome heaven?” Zhu Yijun paused his writing, his eyes fixed on Xu Zhen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My farming skills were fully taught by Ma Yilong; this phrase came from him too. He didn’t mean defying court orders or the emperor’s edicts—his meaning was…” Xu Zhen grew too excited, rushed, and lost his words, unable to express himself clearly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the Great Ming, there could be only one heaven—the Son of Heaven.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To overcome heaven—was this preparing rebellion? The words were indeed slightly taboo.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Yijun smiled: “Power enough to overcome heaven—overcome heaven means overcoming nature, the capriciousness of heaven, the limits of earth’s fertility, the indomitable spirit of human effort against natural disasters. Master Xu, you meant this, didn’t you?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your Majesty is wise!” Xu Zhen exhaled deeply—the emperor’s explanation was perfect; here, “heaven” meant nature.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Zhen hurried on: “Master Ma Yilong, styled Menghe, was a Jinshi of the twenty-sixth year of Jiajing. In the thirty-eighth year of Jiajing, he returned home to establish a school, recruited wandering laborers, and reclaimed wasteland. In the first year, half the harvest belonged to Master Menghe; afterward, all land belonged to the people, and that half-harvest was reserved to recruit more wandering laborers for further reclamation.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Master Menghe compiled a single volume of farming treatise—only six thousand characters, yet each word a pearl.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Zhen, newly recommended to court as an agricultural scholar, rushed to give his master a chance to advance. Zhu Yijun had no objection to such recommendations—Ma Yilong truly served the people of the Great Ming; bringing him to the capital was a good deed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Where is Master Menghe?” Zhu Yijun recorded Xu Zhen’s land-reclamation method—reclaiming wasteland, taking only half the first year’s harvest, then letting all future yields belong to tenants and laborers, using that half to reclaim more land—this was true goodness, not false righteousness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Zhen reclaimed thirty-nine thousand mu of land in one year, supporting two Battalion Commander and over ten thousand people—he was indeed a capable, hardworking scholar.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Such a scholar was a gentleman.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Master Menghe passed away at home two years ago,” Xu Zhen replied—he had not intended to recommend his master; his master had died in the fifth year of Longqing, the year Xu Zhen passed the Jinshi exam.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Zhen feared the emperor might misunderstand Ma Yilong’s phrase “power enough to overcome heaven” as disloyal, unfilial, and disrespectful, and discard the *Ma Yilong’s Farming Discourse*—that would be a true tragedy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What became of Master Menghe’s land reclamation?” Zhu Yijun asked Xu Zhen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Zhen sighed helplessly: “Master Menghe was a Jinshi, a scholar with official status; local powerful clans dared not offend him. After his death, no one managed the reclamation, and it was abandoned.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“How much land was reclaimed?” Zhu Yijun asked again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Zhen’s face darkened with pain: “Twelve thousand seven hundred mu reclaimed—commoners could not hold it; all was seized, and within months, weeds choked the fields.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this, Zhu Yijun put down pen and paper and began working. “Could not hold, seized, choked with weeds”—these simple words laid bare the bloody plunder with terrifying clarity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These reclaimed lands had no land deeds; the powerful clans dared not offend Ma Yilong, for Ma Yilong had fellow Jinshi still serving in court.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the powerful clans could collude with local magistrates, prepare fake deeds in advance, and seize the land the moment Ma Yilong died—this process was certainly not peaceful.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tenants, laborers, and wandering folk had, under Ma Yilong’s protection and guided by his “power enough to overcome heaven,” reclaimed the land—and Ma Yilong gave it all to the displaced. Now these powerful clans, holding a single piece of paper, thought they could seize it?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But commoners could not hold it, and so it was seized—and the land’s fate became weeds and ruin. Reclaimed land was not regular farmland; it was barren land with low yields. The powerful clans demanded high grain rents; commoners couldn’t even feed themselves—who would remain as hired laborers? Thus it ended.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was why Xu Zhen carried a bamboo basket with no insect protection—his teacher Ma Yilong had much to do with it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Zhen had taken Ma Yilong as his master, studying land reclamation exclusively; it would be strange indeed if powerful clans had funded him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The land reclaimed by my people, my subjects!” Zhu Yijun kept working; though small, he never slacked, digging and muttering curses.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All court officials knew Zhang Juzheng was vengeful; if Zhang Juzheng was vengeful, Zhu Yijun was petty—his heart as narrow as a needle’s eye.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The powerful clans of Liyang County, Suzhou Prefecture, did not know they had already caught the young emperor’s eye.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Yijun had gained much today; before returning to the Qianqing Palace to wash, he told Zhang Hong: “Zhang Daban, record this for me: this is my land! Exploited too much? If you can’t farm it, let it lie fallow? You dogs!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before entering the washing chamber, Zhu Yijun emphasized again to Zhang Hong: “My land!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Last night, my son returned from Jingshan beaming with joy. Where did this anger come from today?” Empress Dowager Li, waiting for the meal to be served, noticed the young emperor’s displeasure—it was no longer mere displeasure; it was rage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Yijun recounted the entire story of Ma Yilong, then asked: “Mother, do you know the full story behind Xu Zhen’s impeachment?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Those around my son must be thoroughly investigated. Let’s speak after dinner,” Empress Dowager Li smiled. “Do not speak while eating, do not talk while sleeping.”\u003C\u002Fp>",1827,"2026-06-21T07:55:54.218Z",1,"Qwen3.5 397B","b602580014abf08547fc83476b59b2445fec67721405f13b780755875c262d50","i-really-am-not-neglecting-my-duties-chapter-29","i-really-am-not-neglecting-my-duties-chapter-27",1000,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fi-really-am-not-neglecting-my-duties-cover.jpg"]