Chapter 320: Sharp Rebuke

Li Banghua walked slowly to the assembled officials of Nanjing. Zhao Zhilong, the Xincheng Earl and Garrison Commander of Nanjing, Zhang Yixian, the eunuch in charge of defending Nanjing, and Lü Weiqi, the Minister of War of Nanjing in charge of military affairs, stepped forward with cold faces to greet him first, exchanging formal courtesies and pleasantries. Afterward, the other ministers and vice ministers of the various ministries, still shaken, along with the heads of the Censorate, the Office of Transmission, the Hanlin Academy, and the Imperial Academy, forced themselves to appear composed as they came forward one after another to pay their respects.

How could this group from Nanjing fail to see that Li Banghua's display just now was an act of intimidation? Yet even as indignation rose in their hearts, a long-vanished fear of the imperial court involuntarily stirred within them as well.

After the formalities were concluded, before Zhao Zhilong could speak, Lü Weiqi, standing to the side, spoke up first.

"Your Excellency the Governor-General certainly puts on quite an air of authority! Heh heh! May I ask what brings Your Excellency south this time? An imperial commission to oversee the affairs of South Zhili, heh heh! South Zhili is as prosperous as ever, the people live and work in peace, and all officials diligently perform their duties. In such a time of flourishing peace, how does Your Excellency justify this appointment?"

Lü Weiqi spoke with a mocking tone.

Since offending Wei Zhongxian during the Tianqi era, he had been sent off to Nanjing, serving successively as Vice Minister of the Right of the Ministry of Works and Vice Minister of the Right of the Ministry of Revenue, until the sixth year of Chongzhen, when he assumed the post of Minister of War of Nanjing, a position he held to this day.

For the self-important Lü Weiqi, the Emperor's overthrow of the eunuch faction after taking the throne was certainly gratifying, but the fact that he had not been recalled to the capital for an important post was a clear case of the Emperor failing to recognize talent.

Although he had been elevated to a second-rank official several years ago and had become one of the three great powers of Nanjing, Lü Weiqi remained deeply resentful. He believed that with his seniority and ability, he should at least hold one of the six principal ministerial posts of the court, or even enter the Grand Secretariat to participate in governance. Yet the Emperor left a pillar of the state like himself unused while treasuring men like Wen Tiren and Zhang Zhifa—this clearly bore the marks of a benighted ruler. Such a sovereign was not worth his full support. As the heartland of the Ming Dynasty's tax revenues, South Zhili ought to stand independent of the court, and the court should no longer interfere in the affairs of the Jiangnan region.

And the court's gradual implementation, beginning last year, of abolishing the inland guard stations had enraged Lü Weiqi even more. This strategy of pulling the firewood from under the cauldron was a fatal blow to the Nanjing Ministry of War, which already wielded little authority.

So when he saw the words "Imperial Commission to Oversee the Affairs of South Zhili" written on the wooden placard, his inherent antipathy grew even stronger. Combined with Li Banghua's posturing, which was clearly an insult to the entire Nanjing establishment, all these factors together drove Lü Weiqi to disregard rank and propriety and directly voice his sarcastic remarks.

"Minister Lü's words are mistaken! This is not my authority, but the authority of the imperial court! At a time when the court's authority is gradually waning, certain officials and gentry grow daily more contemptuous of the court, and some have even openly resisted with rebellious acts! In such extraordinary times, I believe it necessary to re-establish the authority of His Majesty and the court in even the smallest matters, to awe those who have become estranged from the court! As for whether South Zhili truly presents the scene of flourishing peace that the Minister describes—heh heh—that claim remains open to question!"

Li Banghua rebutted with a grave and stern expression.

"Heh heh! Does Your Excellency's words carry some hidden implication? Setting aside other places, speaking only of what falls under South Zhili, from what this official has heard, no official or gentry member has ever shown contempt for the court in word or deed! Let alone committed any rebellious act! With a wise sovereign and a flourishing age, with peace and stability throughout the realm and the people living in contentment, is there any need for the court to display its authority?"

Lü Weiqi shot back without the slightest sign of yielding.

Imperial commissioner or first-rank grand minister, what of it? Didn't you know that since the time of Emperor Chengzu, Nanjing has been a separate entity? Of all the imperial commissioners who dared to come to Nanjing to throw their weight around, which one ever actually carried out his imperial commission, rather than eating and drinking their fill before returning to hoodwink the Emperor and his ministers?

Contempt for the court? Rebellious acts? Heh heh, these have been matters of tacit understanding for years now—do you really think you can deny it?

"Only two words in Minister Lü's speech ring true—His Majesty is indeed a wise sovereign! But where does this 'flourishing age' come from? Since the Tianqi era, when the roving bandits rose in Shanxi and Shaanxi, they were only eradicated last year. For over a decade they rampaged across the lands north of the Yangtze, laying waste to several provinces and sending countless innocents to their deaths amid the chaos. Moreover, this man-made calamity coincided with natural disasters—the northern territories of the Great Ming have suffered drought for years on end, leaving the land scorched for a thousand li, with cicadas gasping and thunder dry. Countless common folk were displaced, fleeing famine across a thousand li, and cases of people exchanging their children for food and cooking corpses to stave off hunger were seen again and again! Is this the 'flourishing age' the Minister speaks of? And while the Minister sits in Jiangnan, enjoying daily song and dance, bells and cauldrons of plenty, what have you ever contributed to His Majesty, to the court, or to the common people of the realm?! Enough! A dignified second-rank minister of the court spouts such shameless nonsense, casting aside the aspirations of his years of hard study—this is a disgrace to all scholars under heaven!"

Li Banghua's voice boomed like a great bell, showing not the slightest regard for Lü Weiqi's dignity. While describing the misery of the common people north of the Yangtze over the past decade or more, he directly denounced the ugly faces of Lü Weiqi and the other Jiangnan officials. By the end, the old man's beard and hair bristled with fury as he pointed accusingly at Lü Weiqi and roared.

Lü Weiqi was so humiliated he wished for death, his face flushed crimson. Just as he was about to furiously rebut Li Banghua's accusations, Zhao Zhilong, the Xincheng Earl, interrupted their quarrel.

"Sir Meng'an is past sixty—there is no need for further futile argument. This time Sir Meng'an has come south on an imperial commission to inspect Jiangnan. After such a long journey, you must surely be weary. You should enter the city and rest for a while. This Earl and Garrison Commander Zhang have already reserved a banquet at the Taibai Tower within the city, specially to welcome and wash the dust from Sir Meng'an. Please, after resting and bathing, do us the honor of attending! Sir Meng'an! Please!"

Zhang Yixian, standing nearby, also chimed in to soothe: "Governor-General Li, please do not be angered. With a sage sovereign like His Majesty on the throne, we ministers need only take His sacred will as our duty! Minister Lü may have spoken inappropriately, but his words were not for personal gain. I hope Your Excellency will not take it to heart!"

Zhang Yixian had been in Nanjing for several years now. Though far from the capital's center of power, as one of the foremost figures of the South Zhili region, he was a man whose word was law throughout Jiangnan. Compared to his days in the palace kowtowing and taking orders under senior eunuchs like Wang Dehua and Cao Huachun, this life was far more comfortable. He was thus fairly satisfied with his current position, and had even begun to harbor thoughts of not wanting to return to the capital.

There is gain in loss, and no gain without loss. To obtain something, one must give up something else.

He understood perfectly well the purpose of Li Banghua's southward journey on imperial orders. Early on, when the planned market closure had been detected and reported by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, his people in the palace had informed him of the Emperor's intention to punish severely. Zhang Yixian naturally had no wish to wade into that muddy water. Since he planned to remain in Nanjing for the foreseeable future, he saw no need to offend this group of Nanjing officials—and of course, he had even less desire to offend Li Banghua, who represented the Emperor.

Zhao Zhilong's attitude was similar to Zhang Yixian's. He too had received advance warning from his noble friends in the capital, and his involvement in the market closure affair was shallow. Thus he held an indifferent attitude toward Li Banghua's arrival. Should a conflict arise between the imperial commissioner and the Nanjing side, he and Zhang Yixian could simply mediate from the middle and reap the benefits.

Most of the Xincheng Earl's interests lay in the South Zhili region, and since the imperial commissioner would return to the capital once his business was done, he too approached the matter with the intention of smoothing things over as much as possible.

As for the high officials of the various Nanjing ministries and departments, most were deeply offended by Li Banghua's earlier remarks. They believed that the droughts and roving bandits afflicting the northern territories of the Great Ming were matters for the court in the capital—what did they have to do with South Zhili? Their annual shipments of grain tribute and tax revenues to the capital had never fallen short. Relieving disaster victims and suppressing bandits were your affairs; if you failed to do them well, it was because you lacked ability—perhaps we should take a turn and show you how it's done?

Just because you in the capital are fighting wars and pacifying the people, does that mean we can't drink wine and eat meat? Must we tighten our belts and go without to keep you company? What kind of reasoning is that?

Li Banghua swept his gaze over the surrounding officials, then, accompanied by Zhao Zhilong and Zhang Yixian, walked toward the official sedan chair waiting ahead. Lü Weiqi snorted and flicked his sleeve before striding toward his own sedan chair parked to one side. Several officials familiar with him hurried after him, comforting him while denouncing Li Banghua's arrogance and rudeness. The other officials likewise made their way to their official sedan chairs, following the several grand figures ahead into the city.