[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-stealing-ming":3,"chapter-stealing-ming-stealing-ming-chapter-270":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Stealing Ming",{"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},1220887,1614,"Chapter 270: Section Twenty-Seven: Shame and Honor","stealing-ming-chapter-270",270,"\u003Cp>With Sun Chengzong's fall from power, the eunuch faction's influence at court seemed to have become invincible. Although the eunuch faction was also a gang of thoroughly corrupt embezzlers, Huang Shi had to admit that at least the proportion of incompetents among these embezzlers was somewhat lower than in the Donglin Party. The reckless minting of debased coinage that had begun in the late Wanli years was brought under some degree of control, the imperial court undertook more famine relief operations for the widespread starvation in the north, and reluctant local governments also began repairing river embankments and carrying out limited flood control work.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Shi had no doubt that if the one sitting on the Great Ming throne today were still Zhu Hongwu, then the years of local officials' idleness would certainly have resulted in heads rolling in great numbers. But unfortunately, the present Son of Heaven of the Great Ming was the young Tianqi Emperor, a twenty-one-year-old child who was very generous to his teachers, his stewards, his generals, and his ministers — but that was as far as it went.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tianqi was merely an ordinary young man. The Great Ming imperial court and local governments of this time, compared to the early Tianqi years, were still just as corrupt and rotten; they had merely done a little of the work that should have been done long ago and were no longer so passively negligent. Yet this tiny bit of progress filled Tianqi with delight, and he lavishly rewarded the Grand Secretariat for these achievements. As for Eunuch Wei, who in the Emperor's heart had always appeared as \"loyal and diligent beyond measure,\" he naturally took the largest slice of the cake from these political accomplishments.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Faced with the monstrous power formed by the collaboration between Wei Zhongxian and the eunuch-faction Grand Secretariat, a great wave of building living shrines for Wei Zhongxian finally surged across the Great Ming. This was, without question, a political declaration by the various provincial governors and Viceroys — and, of course, the most foolish kind of political declaration, bearing a striking resemblance in its misguided cleverness to the Donglin grandee Zuo Guangdou's famous saying: \"If one is not a fellow traveler, then one is an enemy.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Furthermore, in all these years since arriving in the late Ming, the policy Huang Shi had pursued was always to straddle the fence. Since this was Huang Shi's principle in conducting himself, he absolutely could not get involved with the living shrines. Out of consideration for the above two aspects, Huang Shi said very tactfully, \"Eunuch Wu, you see clearly — this lowly general simply does not have the money to build a living shrine for Eunuch Wei.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These words made Wu Mu stare blankly. The various provincial governors and Viceroys were vying to petition for building living shrines for Wei Zhongxian, and the materials used were naturally all extremely exquisite. Whether it was thresholds of aloeswood or carved railings of white marble, these were not things that could be bought with just a little money. As far as Huang Shi knew, in any case, the cost of building a living shrine for Wei Zhongxian had never been less than a hundred thousand taels of silver. The trend of competitive one-upmanship was growing ever more intense, the construction costs of the living shrines were constantly rising, and shrines valued at three hundred thousand taels of silver had even appeared.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The annual military pay for the entire Dongjiang Garrison was only two hundred thousand taels of silver; converted to Huang Shi's Left Associate Division, it came to no more than forty thousand taels. Embezzling tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of taels of silver to build a living shrine might not be a difficult problem for the Provincial Governor of Liaodong, but for the Dongjiang Garrison it was no different from an astronomical figure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Well, about this...\" After hearing this, Wu Mu pondered for a moment and finally, steeling himself, laid his cards on the table: \"Eunuch Wei has said that as long as General Huang submits a memorial requesting the establishment of a living shrine, that will suffice. The moment Eunuch Wei sees this memorial, he will speak on General Huang's behalf before His Majesty, to establish a permanent garrison and send special personnel to Liaonan to re-verify the troop strength.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing Huang Shi remain silent and wordless for a long while, Wu Mu, fearing that Huang Shi was truly worried Wei Zhongxian would not show him face, lowered his voice and added one more sentence: \"Eunuch Wei has said that as soon as General Huang submits the memorial requesting a living shrine, he will immediately approve it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Little did Wu Mu know that Huang Shi was at that moment cursing inwardly without end: \"This really is bootlicking!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Bootlicking\" — this practice began in the Northern Song years and was also connected to eunuchs. At that time, Emperor Shenzong of Song sent the eunuch Li Xian to inspect the frontier. The Northern Song civil officials, who always prided themselves on their moral integrity, heard that Li Xian's feet were very smelly and vied to wash Eunuch Li's feet. As the civil officials knelt on the ground, holding Li Xian's feet, they did not forget to first take a sniff and then exclaim in admiration: \"How fragrant are the Grand Commandant's feet!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sentence Wu Mu added afterward made Huang Shi even more certain of the significance of the living shrines. Just as the Song dynasty civil officials of that year could feel smug about having washed Li Xian's feet, so the Great Ming civil officials of today could weep and clamor to build living shrines for Wei Zhongxian. Bootlicking in fact also represented a kind of credential; those who succeeded in bootlicking could naturally look down on those who failed to achieve it. Building living shrines and bootlicking differed only in form, but their essence was exactly the same.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although the provincial governors and Viceroys everywhere vied to build living shrines for Wei Zhongxian, one could not casually become part of Wei Zhongxian's inner circle. With so many high local officials across the realm petitioning to build living shrines, Wei Zhongxian naturally had to select carefully. Wu Mu was in fact telling Huang Shi: \"Eunuch Wei regards you with special favor and hopes to draw you into his inner circle. This is truly an opportunity not to be missed.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although historically Wei Zhongxian did not enjoy glory for many years before meeting his downfall, in this time and space that might not necessarily be the case. If Wei Zhongxian did not fall from power this time, or fell later, then Huang Shi's refusal of Wei Zhongxian's goodwill today would be very unwise and would bring him a great deal of trouble. Without a doubt, Wei Zhongxian was by no means a gentleman of broad-mindedness; once this knot was tied, it would be difficult to untie.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Conversely, if Huang Shi petitioned to build a living shrine for Wei Zhongxian, the benefits would certainly be enormous. Wei Zhongxian would not let his inner circle lose face. Even if Wei Zhongxian still fell from power as in the original history, amid a vast ocean of petitions, Huang Shi would not be particularly conspicuous. Moreover, as long as Huang Shi could achieve sufficient military merit, these stains would count for nothing at all. Huang Shi was not a civil official; no one could use the moral integrity of a scholar-official to make harsh demands of him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Having considered both sides, the correct choice was about to emerge. Huang Shi sighed, silently apologized in his heart, and then said to Wu Mu: \"Eunuch Wu, you see clearly — this lowly general is still a subordinate of the Dongjiang Garrison. If a living shrine is to be petitioned for, it should be Marshal Mao who takes the lead. This lowly general is unwilling to let others say that I do not know my place and am arrogantly overstepping my bounds. I beg Eunuch Wu to understand clearly.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Mu again fell into a thoughtful silence, and finally looked up to confirm: \"Does General Huang mean that as long as Marshal Mao first petitions for a living shrine, General Huang will then follow suit, correct?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes.\" Huang Shi answered without the slightest hesitation, while in his heart he once again silently apologized to Mao Wenlong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Those with power and influence all wish that everyone under heaven would be willing to bootlick them, and they can then select a few from among them to grant the privilege of bootlicking — this best satisfies that sense of superiority of being high above all others. Wei Zhongxian had even granted Huang Shi his approval before Huang Shi made any request; in Wei Zhongxian's mind, this was undoubtedly a special honor and favor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only... only Huang Shi had once asked himself in self-examination: If he had arrived not in the Ming dynasty but in the Song dynasty; if he had become an officer in the Western Route Army; if Li Xian had generously allowed Huang Shi to go wash his feet at night... then what would his, Huang Shi's, answer have been?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There are only three kinds of people in the world: those who bootlick, those who desire to bootlick but cannot, and those who disdain to do it. As a modern man, Huang Shi had his own bottom line. Although he would speak some sycophantic words against his conscience and would engage in some transactions, to truly cast aside all face and fawn and curry favor before the eyes of the whole world — that, Huang Shi still could not do. And he believed that this should be not only a modern man's bottom line, but also the bottom line of a person with a sense of shame and honor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet Huang Shi still did not have the courage to flatly refuse Wei Zhongxian, and he knew he could place his hopes on Mao Wenlong. Huang Shi had once read the Veritable Records of Emperor Xizong. In the years when Wei Zhongxian's power was monstrous, in the farce of the realm's Viceroys and governors vying to petition for living shrines, only Mao Wenlong remained completely untainted, maintaining the bottom line of a person with a sense of shame and honor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the twenty-seventh day of the fifth month of the sixth year of Tianqi, regarding the eighteen-pounder large-caliber cannons, the general consensus finally formed on Changsheng Island was that they were decent for equipping the naval camp or fortresses, only that Changsheng Island had no money to build fortresses, nor was there any need to equip the naval camp with such heavy firepower. So in the end, Huang Shi decided to keep the eighteen-pounder cannons in reserve for use when attacking cities in the future; in any case, rate of fire was not particularly important at such times.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this moment, Huang Shi was fiddling with a transparent crystal in his hand, holding it up to the sunlight and squinting to observe the bubbles and impurities inside. After a long while, he finally nodded and said, \"You have done very well.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bao Jiusun, as modest as ever, said, \"My lord overpraises me; your humble subordinate has rendered no merit.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Brother Bao, you are now the Guard Commander of Jinzhou Guard. Do not keep calling yourself 'humble subordinate, humble subordinate.'\" Although Bao Jiusun had been in charge of production work in the rear all along, Huang Shi had never forgotten to submit reports for his merits.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes, my lord. This lowly general obeys your command.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Mm, that's right.\" Since Bao Jiusun was now a general, he naturally had to change his name as well. Now his record in the Great Ming Ministry of War was the dignified Guard Commander of Jinzhou Guard, Bao Bowen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Shi tossed the piece of glass in his hand back to Bao Bowen. He hoped that the next batch of glass produced would have fewer bubbles and that more impurities could be removed. Bao Bowen committed Huang Shi's orders firmly to memory, then took his leave and withdrew.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Originally, Changsheng Island simply could not produce glass no matter how they tried. Last month, a disheartened Huang Shi was about to give up, but when he stopped trying to keep it a secret and explicitly told his subordinates what he wanted, Huang Shi was astonished to discover that the Great Ming had long been capable of producing glass.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Early this month, the glass craftsmen Huang Shi had requested from the Ministry of Works arrived at Changsheng Island. In less than ten days, the Changsheng Island kilns they had modified began producing glass. Although this glass was still far from what Huang Shi needed, the large waterwheel-powered bellows that Changsheng Island possessed were also not found anywhere else, and producing relatively pure glass seemed to be only a matter of time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After racking his brains in deep thought, Huang Shi discovered that apart from the term \"silver mirror reaction,\" he had absolutely no idea how to produce mirrors. But fortunately, Huang Shi had not originally intended to produce glass for the purpose of making mirrors; he valued more the three important military supplies that would arrive along with glass.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Mechanical pocket watches, monocular telescopes. And furthermore... canned goods.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whether mechanical pocket watches or telescopes, technicians in these fields could be obtained from the Jesuits. To placate the Jesuits, Huang Shi had even specially organized a group of special forces. This special forces unit included a choir and a group of people who could recite the Bible backwards and forwards; these special forces soldiers were all loyal subordinates trained by Zhang Zaidi, and they were all very clear about the heavy responsibility they bore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>During the period when the Jesuits sent people to inspect Changsheng Island last time, Zhang Zaidi first used this special forces unit to move the priests to tears, then had everyone swarm forward and bombard those priests for days with an overwhelming barrage of foolish questions, giving them little opportunity to examine the ordinary believers of Changsheng Island.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the few individual \"ordinary believers\" whom the Jesuit priests did manage to question were, without exception, also Zhang Zaidi's special forces soldiers in disguise. Their fervor for the Bible made even the Jesuit priests feel somewhat ashamed of their own inadequacy. So for Huang Shi to ask the Jesuits to help find a few clockmakers was entirely without problem. Technicians who could grind telescope lenses might be relatively scarce, but there was no need to be too anxious about that; they could be found sooner or later.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With glass available, Huang Shi felt they could begin trying to produce canned goods. As far as he remembered, this item only needed to be sealed and boiled. The specific storage duration could be left for Bao Bowen to explore through trial and error. Once this thing appeared, it could not only greatly reduce the transport pressure on logistics, but also enrich the troops' diet and expand the army's range of operations.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After Wu Mu left, Huang Shi again summoned Jin Qiude and Zhao Manxiong to discuss this matter. Although they seemed to have some reservations about Huang Shi's choice, they still obeyed their superior's will and proceeded to discuss the subsequent steps.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Both of them believed that Huang Shi's countermeasure had no major problems, but the key still lay with Mao Wenlong. Zhao Manxiong, pondering the bottom line Huang Shi had just revealed to him, said, \"My lord, if Marshal Mao does petition for a living shrine, will my lord still find an excuse to decline?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Shi answered without the slightest hesitation: \"Yes.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This resolute answer made Jin Qiude and Zhao Manxiong exchange a glance. Huang Shi spread his hands: \"If you two have anything to say, speak freely.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"My lord, your subordinate believes that if we had Eunuch Wei's full support at court, our Changsheng Island would have much more ample supplies.\" What Jin Qiude said was not without reason. Among the civil and military officials of Liaodong, Yan Mingtai, who came from the eunuch faction, was someone who had successfully bootlicked, and in the period that followed, Yan Mingtai received Wei Zhongxian's vigorous support.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Moreover, my lord is now at odds with that dog of an official Yuan Chonghuan. If we had Eunuch Wei's help, would toppling him not also be an easy matter?\" Jin Qiude paused, and seeing that Huang Shi still remained noncommittal, added: \"That dog official Yuan was promoted by Grand Secretary Sun; he is a man of the Donglin faction.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Shi knew that what Jin Qiude said was not wrong. Historically, although Yuan Chonghuan desired to bootlick Wei Zhongxian and even wrote a lengthy, effusive ten-thousand-word petition for a living shrine, extolling Wei Zhongxian as rare in heaven and unmatched on earth, and never forgot to include Wei Zhongxian in all his memorials, Wei Zhongxian did not much appreciate this kind of body-selling defection and kicked Yuan Chonghuan aside, making him one of those who desired to bootlick but could not.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I was also promoted by Grand Secretary Sun. I received my Company Commander rank from Wang Huazhen. So did Marshal Mao.\" Huang Shi's expression remained unchanged as he retorted in a calm tone: \"I am also a person of Donglin origins. Although the people of the world will not use the standards of scholar-officials to demand me, selling one's body to defect is selling one's body to defect. Even as a military officer, I cannot change this essence.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Our Dongjiang Garrison is not like the Liao Garrison. Our officers and soldiers do not have enough to eat and lack clothes to cover their bodies. For years, the bones of officers and soldiers who died in battle have not even been collected. The reason we can barely sustain ourselves is solely by relying on the unity of purpose among officers and men. If Marshal Mao and I truly went to petition for a living shrine, it might perhaps bring some benefits in military supplies, but once word spreads that we each spent over a hundred thousand taels of silver, I fear that the entire Dongjiang Garrison, from top to bottom, would harbor discontent and hold us in even greater contempt for our conduct. In the blink of an eye, the whole garrison would disintegrate and fall apart.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Shi's words made Zhao Manxiong nod slightly: \"My lord speaks rightly. After your subordinate returns, he will carefully devise a plan for my lord and will certainly find a reason that can pass muster.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Go back and think it over carefully. But this is only to prepare for the worst, because Marshal Mao will not disappoint me.\" Huang Shi felt that Mao Wenlong was a person who would disdain to do such a thing. Historically, from beginning to end, he never wrote a single word of petition, nor did he ever sing a single sentence of praise for Wei Zhongxian in his memorials: \"I hope that Marshal Mao is still the Marshal Mao I knew.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Recently, personnel conflicts that greatly vexed Huang Shi had occurred on Changsheng Island. One of them involved Li Yunrui and Yang Zhiyuan, with the troublemaker being He Dingyuan. During the time Huang Shi was in the capital, Yang Zhiyuan had taken a liking to a young woman in the teaching corps — she was the daughter of the late Grand Coordinator Xiong. To please Young Lady Xiong, Yang Zhiyuan decided to help her collect Grand Coordinator Xiong's remains, and also helped her repair the tomb and erect a gravestone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the day when everything for Grand Coordinator Xiong was finally put in order, Li Yunrui happened to pass by. Seeing Yang Zhiyuan and Young Lady Xiong, he went up to speak with them. Although Yang Zhiyuan was also of dignified appearance, he was still far from comparable to Li Yunrui. The latter had thick brows and large eyes, with a long beard that reached past his chest; he usually paid great attention to his appearance, and his eloquence was even more exceptional. With just a few words of conversation, he captured Miss Xiong's heart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the time, Yang Zhiyuan was still foolishly oblivious to everything. But since Li Yunrui dared to claim that he could pass through a myriad flowers without a single leaf clinging to him, he naturally had a trick or two up his sleeve. After discerning some hints from Young Lady Xiong's expression, he unceremoniously launched an offensive, and within a few days the two were so close they were about to discuss marriage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That woman is just a love-struck fool!\" When Huang Shi summoned the primary troublemaker He Dingyuan for questioning, the latter was still seething with indignation, showing not the slightest trace of remorse or self-awareness for having caused trouble.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Mobile Corps Commander He, this marshal is not asking for your opinion of Young Lady Xiong, and this marshal considers your assessment to be extremely disrespectful to Mobile Corps Commander Yang!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Shi roared as he slammed the table, finally managing to knock down some of He Dingyuan's arrogant bluster. He Dingyuan lowered his head, and his voice dropped by eight degrees: \"My lord, this lowly general was merely indignant at the injustice. Brother Yang is such a good man.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Shi gave a cold laugh, and his tone turned grim: \"Brother Yang himself acknowledges that he is my good brother. But Mobile Corps Commander He, you deliberately stirred up trouble and slandered a colleague — what punishment do you think you deserve?\"\u003C\u002Fp>",3607,"2026-06-04T07:54:54.057Z",1,"Novelzhen Translator","37344b38c8504923e9eedad1e990094d0eb5012dfb326fdbe378bdfd389916da","stealing-ming-chapter-271","stealing-ming-chapter-269",323,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fstealing-ming-cover.jpg"]