Chapter 369: Factional Strife Turns Bloodred

Your Majesty, the dispute between Shanxi and Shaanxi provinces cannot be resolved quickly.

It would be better to first have the Three Departments investigate, and only act once the full circumstances are clear.

The immediate priority remains the rebel forces that have fled into Shanxi.

Yue Mingyu was the first to state his position.

Deep inside, he silently prayed: don’t replace me.

Affected by the rebellion, the number of officials dismissed from the Great Yu court is countless.

As a result, the Ministry of Personnel’s reserve pool has, for the first time, run short.

In this round of major reshuffling, officials without influential connections have also advanced further.

The drawbacks are equally obvious: many officials with limited ability have been placed in key positions.

Many regions have been thrown into chaos, and administrative efficiency has further declined.

The court now awaits the emperor’s reopening of the imperial examinations to replenish fresh blood.

Minister Yue speaks wisely; at this moment, large-scale changes are indeed inappropriate.

The Grand Secretariat shall urge the Three Departments to investigate the Shanxi-Shaanxi dispute as soon as possible.

As for suppressing the rebellion, what strategies do you propose?

Emperor Yongning nodded.

Assigning the Three Departments to investigate is merely muddying the waters.

With officials from both provinces involved, the court must send an investigation team—and only after both regions are restored to peace.

Otherwise, the officials in the capital won’t risk their lives to go investigate.

If true accountability is desired, the Embroidered Uniform Guard would be far more efficient than the Three Departments.

But as emperor, one must consider the broader picture.

Shaanxi has just endured war; it is a time of rebuilding, unsuitable for large-scale personnel changes.

Shanxi is currently enduring war; likewise, it is unsuitable for official adjustments.

Even if problems exist, they must be suppressed for now.

Whether to settle accounts later depends on how the situation develops.

Deep inside, Emperor Yongning felt a faint pang of regret.

Had he known the situation would develop thus, he never should have sent all the pillars of the meritorious nobility to the front.

The campaign against the White Lotus Sect did achieve breakthrough progress—but when he needed counsel, he had no one to turn to!

These ministers below are loyal enough, but their abilities are limited.

Especially in military matters, their incompetence becomes glaringly obvious.

The Guanzhong rebels’ flight into Shanxi was partly due to local officials’ dereliction, but mostly due to the court’s failed strategic deployment.

Your Majesty, the only course now is to mobilize a large army to encircle and exterminate them.

Luo Zefeng answered nervously.

He ascended to the position of Minister of War only because everyone knew the post was a burning seat, and no one dared compete.

Bearing the reputation of “understanding military affairs,” he was, utterly unprepared, “unanimously chosen.”

He had once clung to a sliver of hope that Great Yu’s situation wasn’t that dire.

After assuming the post of Minister of War, he realized how idealistic he had been.

Great Yu’s true condition is ten times worse than he imagined.

The empire’s capable armies are few; the two most formidable armed forces both show signs of growing autonomous power.

Liaozhen’s defiance is public knowledge; the meritorious nobility’s armed forces are no less unruly.

These armies remain loyal to the court—but not to the civil official-controlled court.

Yet the senior civil officials place great hopes on him, expecting him to bring the entire military under the Ministry of War’s control.

His predecessor, to suppress the rebellion, had to allow the meritorious nobility to grow stronger, and was branded a traitor by the civil faction, forced to depart in disgrace.

Now, in his own position, he faces the same dilemma.

Be more specific?

Emperor Yongning asked irritably.

A vague answer like “mobilize a large army” is no solution at all.

To implement it concretely, one must first determine where to draw troops from.

How many troops?

Who will command them?

How much money and grain is required?

When will the campaign launch?

…

None of these concrete questions were addressed—it doesn’t resemble a solution at all.

Compared to previous Ministers of War, Luo Zefeng’s ability is clearly inferior.

Your Majesty, the southern front is gradually improving; perhaps we can withdraw one garrison from the front to reinforce.

Additionally, draw two battalions from the Capital Garrison, and combine them with Shanxi’s forces to form a suppression army.

For commander, I have three candidates to recommend.

First, Qin Tianrui, Regional Commander of the First Garrison of Jiangxi, descendant of the Duke of Xingguo.

Second, Liu Qifeng, Regional Commander of the First Garrison of Huguang, descendant of the Marquis of Nanyang.

Third, Ye Hongchang, Regional Commander of the Second Garrison of Huguang, descendant of the Marquis of Pingyuan.

All three possess the talent of a great general and are fit for this great responsibility!

Luo Zefeng answered with gritted teeth.

He did not wish to promote meritorious nobility generals—it was sheer necessity.

Recommending a general carries responsibility; if the appointed commander suffers a major defeat on the front, the Minister of War will suffer along with him.

To reduce risk, he immediately eliminated generals without distinguished battle records.

The remaining generals with distinguished records either came from the Nine Borders or the meritorious nobility.

The Nine Borders’ forces have been drawn upon repeatedly; what remains are assigned critical duties and unsuitable for large-scale withdrawal.

The only force with surplus troops is Liaozhen.

But Liaozhen’s situation is special—the court barely manages to suppress them; it could never promote their generals.

After this series of exclusions, the most suitable commanders were all descendants of the meritorious nobility.

Recommending these three was because their families were annihilated in the Great Capital Explosion; only collateral branches remain.

They’ve already exhausted their ancestral legacy to reach their current positions.

This favor he bestows is like charcoal in snow to them.

If they rise again to the peak of the meritorious nobility, this political investment will yield immense returns.

Minister Luo, the southern war is at a critical juncture; troop movements are inadvisable.

If withdrawing troops creates a gap in the front and allows the rebel Fu to break out, all prior efforts will be wasted.

For the sake of the greater good, the Ministry of War must find another capable candidate!

Left Censor-in-Chief Lai Yaohua immediately objected.

Military authority in the capital and southern provinces has largely fallen into the hands of the meritorious nobility; if their man becomes commander, Shanxi’s forces will also be branded as meritorious nobility.

Previously they scorned meritorious descendants for idling away their lives; now that these men suddenly strive, they are even more troublesome.

Unlike commoner-born officials, these men need not pass the imperial examinations to enter court service.

The unwritten rule restricting meritorious descendants has been broken again and again during the suppression campaign.

There are only so many official posts; if the meritorious nobility takes more, they inevitably crowd out opportunities for orthodox examination-bred officials.

For these civil aristocratic families who control the examinations, the meritorious nobility has become their greatest rival.

Shi Jingming, Regional Commander of the Second Garrison of Liaozhen.

Shi Jinglin, Regional Commander of the Third Garrison of Liaozhen.

Yun Yufeng, Regional Commander of the Third Garrison of Huguang.

Su Zhiyong, Regional Commander of the Fourth Garrison of Huguang.

Xie Zhiyuan, Regional Commander of the Second Garrison of Jiangxi.

…

Luo Zefeng helplessly recited a string of names—all non-meritorious nobility generals or Liaozhen generals.

Seeing this, Lai Yaohua, who had just objected, was immediately put on the spot.

Unlike the previous three, these men’s families remain in their prime.

Elevating them would cause even more severe consequences.

Aside from these, does Great Yu have no one else?

Lai Yaohua could not help but demand.

Had the setting permitted, he would have cursed Luo Zefeng’s loyalty—just where does his ass sit?

He knew the Pure Stream faction sought to suppress both Liaozhen and the meritorious nobility, yet still recommended men from both camps.

Minister Lai, if you have a better candidate, please propose one.

Luo Zefeng replied irritably.

At this moment, he suddenly understood the anguish of the former Minister of War.

Behind him trailed a group of useless allies, obsessed solely with personal gain and utterly disregarding reality.

If he compromised, the situation would inevitably collapse further, ending with the Emperor condemning him and throwing him into prison.

To uphold his principles, however, would anger the Pure Stream faction.

Within the civil official camp, other power groups would carefully weigh consequences—but the Pure Stream faction acted with the most extremism.

The bad precedent set by Yin Zuo and the other had not ended with their deaths; instead, it prolonged unrestricted factional strife.

Though everyone despised such conduct, they could not deny its effectiveness in power struggles.

Under the system of rules, the one with the lower bottom line would have the better chance of gaining the upper hand.

“Selecting generals is your Ministry of War’s duty.”

“If you cannot find a suitable general, that is dereliction of duty on your part as Minister of War!”

Lai Yaohua immediately rebuked him.

After signaling, the censors swiftly followed suit, impeaching Luo Zefeng for dereliction of duty.

In an instant, the court erupted into chaos.

Just days ago, they were allies; now, over a disagreement in policy, they had become enemies in the blink of an eye.

Deep inside, Lai Yaohua knew his actions were morally questionable.

But there was no choice—factional strife admitted no mercy.

Recommending a general with no battlefield record carried risk, but to curb the growing power of the Meritorious Nobility faction, such risks had to be taken.

Once verbal warfare began, it rarely stopped.

Within the time it took to drink a cup of tea, all major factions had plunged into the fray, turning the grand hall into a brawl.

No one knew who had started it, but the verbal battle had instantly turned into physical violence.

Watching the officials fight one another, Emperor Yongning uncharacteristically did not intervene.

He had long resented these ministers, but was bound by the rules of the game and could do nothing.

Now, watching the hundred officials brawl below, he felt a flicker of satisfaction.

“Stop!”

“Embroidered Uniform Guard, pull these officials apart at once!”

Seeing the situation spiral out of control, Wan Junhui immediately ordered them to separate the combatants.

Yet tragedy still occurred: many of the officials involved bore black eyes and swollen faces.

Lai Yaohua, who had sparked the violence, suffered the worst—he collapsed on the ground, unable to rise, spitting blood continuously.

Clearly, someone had struck him with a hidden blow during the melee.

Not only Lai Yaohua, but all the Pure Stream officials had been severely injured.

The root cause of their beating was, of course, the civil-military conflict.

Though military officers were few in the court, they had trained since childhood in battlefield combat and could easily overpower several scholars in a fight.

Had it not been for the public setting, where killing was too dangerous to risk, several would likely have died today.

“Summon the imperial physicians to treat these officials.”

Emperor Yongning’s cold voice snapped the ministers back to their senses.

Especially the beaten Pure Stream officials, who privately regretted their actions.

A gentleman uses words, not fists—why had they lost control and struck out?

The military officers in court were mostly from the Meritorious Nobility faction.

Their earlier open hostility had deeply offended them.

Sparking a full-scale brawl had handed them the perfect opportunity for revenge.

The Emperor and the Grand Secretariat’s failure to intervene immediately clearly signaled accumulated resentment—they had deliberately watched them get beaten.

“Your Majesty, I beg—”

Before he could finish his complaint, Lai Yaohua fainted dead on the spot.

With their leader down and reason restored, the Pure Stream officials quickly fell silent.

They had never been in the right to begin with; further uproar would only deepen the Emperor’s disdain.

“Minister Lai, devoted to the state’s affairs, does not wish us to be delayed by this matter.”

“Embroidered Uniform Guard, carry the wounded away for treatment by the imperial physicians. The rest, resume deliberations.”

“As for the Regional Commander, choose one from the generals nominated by the Ministry of War!”

Emperor Yongning’s words enraged the Pure Stream officials to the brink.

They had not only taken a beating for nothing—they had also lost the chance to seize the command of the suppression campaign.

But the Emperor had spoken; they could not refuse.

This was the advantage of a multi-faction balance: the Emperor stood above as arbiter, free to decide according to his will.

“Your Majesty, in my view, let General Qin take command.”

“The First Garrison of Jiangxi is currently stationed in Yangzhou; recalling them to crush the rebels who have infiltrated Shanxi would be convenient.”

Wan Junhui was the first to state his position.

At this critical moment, he, as Grand Secretary, could not retreat.

Though civil-military conflict mattered, crushing the rebellion mattered more.

The Pure Stream could rant—they held no real power and bore no responsibility for their words.

If the Grand Secretariat joined the chaos, the empire itself would be in peril.

The Jiangbei region had gradually been reclaimed by imperial forces; Fu’s rebels were now confined to a single corner.

Even if they attempted to break out, they would not choose Yangzhou as their escape route.

It was not a question of whether they could capture it—it was that Jiangbei offered them no foothold whatsoever.

If they truly wished to flee, they should head toward the Central Plains.

Henan had vast numbers of starving peasants who could rapidly swell their ranks and restore their strength.

To gather a million troops and gamble everything—to unite with the rebel forces in Shanxi and launch a joint assault on the capital—was the only way to break the deadlock.

At worst, they could retreat west into Sichuan, ally with the Sichuan rebels, and carve out a domain in Ba-Shu.

“Then let him be it!”

“Also send messengers to urge my several Viceroy’s to swiftly exterminate Fu’s remaining rebels and restore peace to the realm.”

Emperor Yongning mused aloud.

The White Lotus Rebellion had dragged on too long—especially since the fall of Nanjing, it had brought him immense political pressure.

Now victory was in sight; he could not wait a single moment longer.

Had it not been for the astonishing unity among his Viceroy’s in strategy against Fu, he would have already issued orders to interfere.

He could not directly command the front lines, but he could still issue edicts urging decisive battle.

The longer it dragged on, the more disadvantageous the situation became for Great Yu.

…

(End of Chapter)