Chapter 417: Enrollment

"Yang Qing's analysis is indeed well-reasoned and well-supported; I am now much more at ease! The two-wing surprise troops I asked about earlier—are they fully prepared?"

Zhu Youjian continued with another question.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, Academician Lu and Dengzhou are both fully prepared, awaiting only the right moment to march out at any time!"

Yang Sichang replied with a cupped-fist salute.

"Good! Now everything is in place except the east wind. Once this battle succeeds, our Great Ming's border troubles will be entirely eliminated, and we will also save a vast amount of money and supplies to improve the people's livelihood—at least for several years, our Great Ming will have no worries of war!"

Thinking that soon most of the Great Ming's internal and external troubles would be eliminated, Zhu Youjian's mood immediately turned cheerful.

This time, as long as he thoroughly crippled the Jianzhou barbarians and took the opportunity to disband the Liaoxi military clans as well, that would save an enormous expenditure of over five million taels every year.

Moreover, the vast fertile lands beyond the passes could be used to relocate the disaster refugees from the Shanxi-Shaanxi region; with one rising and the other falling, the Great Ming's fiscal situation would be thoroughly improved.

Regarding the postwar resettlement of the Eight Banners, Zhu Youjian planned to adopt a method of dispersal to different locations, moving the not-so-numerous Jianzhou Jurchen to other provinces in the interior—this way, within a few generations, these Jurchen descendants would gradually become Sinicized and henceforth become part of the Great Ming.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, may I ask what matter has prompted Your Majesty to summon us ministers to the palace today? I beg Your Majesty to make it clear!"

Hou Xun's interjection interrupted Zhu Youjian's train of thought, and only then did he remember the purpose of summoning the assembled ministers to the palace today.

"Mm, hehe, I was so absorbed in other considerations that I forgot today's matter. The reason I summoned you all here concerns the Crown Prince."

Zhu Youjian deliberately paused here to observe everyone's attitudes and reactions—indeed, at the mention of the Crown Prince, all the ministers in the hall perked up with full attention and turned their gazes toward him in unison.

"The Crown Prince has been instructed these past years by his two tutors in the Eastern Palace; his learning and conduct have naturally given me great satisfaction. Entrusting the Great Ming to the Crown Prince in the future also sets my mind at ease. The Crown Prince has now turned twelve. In order to let him gain some understanding of the common people of the Great Ming and have more contact with affairs outside the palace, so that he will not fail to recognize the hardships of the people in the future, I have therefore decided that, starting next month, the Crown Prince will study at the Imperial Academy under an alias until the age of sixteen, during which time he will be treated no differently from ordinary Imperial Academy students."

Under the astonished gazes of all the ministers, Zhu Youjian announced this carefully considered decision.

"Your minister opposes this! The Eastern Palace has always been the foundation of the state. Since there are already renowned teachers and great scholars guiding the Crown Prince's studies, why must he go outside the palace to mix with others? Moreover, a white dragon in fish's clothing has always been a great taboo. If news of the Crown Prince leaving the palace were learned by those with ill intent, and someone should wish to harm the Crown Prince—once the foundation of the state is shaken, disaster would be upon us! As for Your Majesty's decision to violate ancestral institutions in this manner, if we ministers do not remonstrate against it, and word spreads, would not the scholarly community think that all those beneath the throne are merely flattering sycophants!"

Zhang Guowei, Minister of Rites, was the first to step forward and break the silence in the hall, expressing strong opposition to Zhu Youjian's somewhat rash decision, while also subtly directing his spear at Wen Tiren, who was known for his flattery of the throne.

Whatever Zhang Guowei's actual reasons for opposing this matter, his arguments were quite tenable and also represented the attitude of most people in the hall, so no one else stepped forward to refute him.

"Your minister seconds Minister Zhang's words; Your Majesty must still consider this matter carefully. Previously there were rumors in the streets that Your Majesty had lightly permitted the Crown Prince to leave the palace at will. Since I had not witnessed it with my own eyes, I had no grounds to remonstrate, but from Your Majesty's conduct today, it appears the rumors were not unfounded! As the sovereign of a nation, one's every word and deed should be marked by gravity and steadiness as a daily matter; flighty and unrestrained behavior is absolutely impermissible! I hope Your Majesty will think on this carefully!"

Shi Bangyao, Right Censor-in-Chief, rose, made his bow, and said with a stern expression.

Shi Bangyao, who in daily life was extremely proper and upright in word and deed, placed the greatest emphasis on everything being done according to established rules; Zhu Youjian's wildly imaginative ideas greatly displeased him.

Although he ordinarily looked down on a hypocrite like Zhang Guowei, adhering to the principle of addressing the matter rather than the person, this time he chose to stand on Zhang Guowei's side.

"This old minister seconds Censor-in-Chief Shi's words! Your Majesty has repeatedly altered ancestral institutions on your own authority; if this continues, the words of the ancestors will become nothing but waste paper! Such conduct risks drawing criticism from all under heaven!"

Wang Yingxiong, who had been watching coldly from the sidelines, also stepped forward to state his position on Zhu Youjian's decision, and took the opportunity to subtly point at some of Zhu Youjian's earlier measures as well.

"Sending the Crown Prince out of the palace to study is truly not a wise move. The Eastern Palace is noble as the heir apparent—how can he be allowed to spend extended time with miscellaneous persons of no account? Moreover, the Crown Prince is young, lacking in both mental maturity and life experience; if he were to be beguiled by those of wicked heart, that would not be a blessing for the state!"

Another Grand Secretary, Zhang Zhifa, also expressed his view.

These several senior ministers' reasons for opposition were not all the same, but they were all quite persuasive—had Zhu Youjian not been a transmigrator, this remonstrance might well have made him doubt his own decision.

Of the ministers still in the hall, only Wen Tiren, Yang Sichang, Fan Jingwen, Hou Xun, and Ni Yuanlu had not yet stated their positions, but judging from the expressions of these men, most of them still opposed the matter—only out of deference to the Emperor's dignity had they not voiced agreement with Zhang Guowei and the others.

"Your minister seconds Your Majesty's decision! Your Majesty is an extraordinary sage ruler; the various policies enacted thus far have fully proven this point. Facts have shown that whatever measure Your Majesty takes, there is always profound meaning within it, and in the end its results are excellent! This matter of the Crown Prince going out to study is the same case. I beg Your Majesty to first explain the matter for our benefit before any further discussion!"

Just as Zhu Youjian was about to state the accompanying conditions, Wen Tiren stepped forward first, taking a clear and unequivocal stance on his side.

"Hehe! Why must the Chief Grand Secretary speak so plainly? There are rumors in the streets that the Grand Secretariat of the Great Ming is like clay idols and wooden statues—some even go so far as to call them echo birds. Truly, wind does not enter a tight-woven wall without cause!"

Zhang Guowei mocked Wen Tiren without the slightest courtesy.

"Does the Minister's remark imply that His Majesty is benighted? A dignified Minister of Rites actually delights in the gossip of ignorant common folk—does such conduct befit your station? As a senior minister of the court, must you make street rumors the foundation of your standing? In serving the Great Ming, must hearsay and half-truths be your guiding principle? In doing so, where does that leave His Majesty? What exactly is the Minister's intention behind the above remarks?"

Seeing Zhang Guowei's repeated overt and covert barbs, Old Wen's vicious nature immediately flared, and a string of heart-piercing words poured forth; Zhang Guowei's face instantly turned extremely ugly, while everyone else in the hall watched the two of them with the attitude of spectators enjoying a show.

To slay a man, slay his heart—Wen Tiren's words were exceptionally vicious, stopping just short of openly saying that Zhang Guowei did not hold the Emperor in his eyes at all.

It was also Zhang Guowei's own doing—using the occasion of court deliberations to repeatedly challenge Old Wen's bottom line, and this time he had finally thoroughly provoked Old Wen's ire.

"Enough, enough! Minister Wen, do not lose your composure, and there is no need to take street gossip to heart. I have always kept your deeds in view; with you at the helm of the Grand Secretariat, I am quite at ease! The remonstrances of you all regarding the Crown Prince also come from public-spirited hearts, and I am well aware of that. I had not yet finished speaking just now—regarding the Crown Prince going out of the palace to study, I have further thoughts!"

Wen Tiren's words had successfully stoked Zhu Youjian's anger.

He ought to find some pretext to send this Zhang Guowei packing back to his hometown.

This fellow, aside from being sarcastic and gossiping about others, had never offered a single constructive suggestion on the court's major policies—he was a typical specimen of the old-style bureaucrat.

This kind of stumbling block ought to be moved out of the way; once the deliberations were finished, he would find a reason to send him home.