Chapter 6: The Imperial Estate (2)

Wang Cheng'en supported the Chongzhen Emperor by the arm as he descended from the carriage. After stepping down, the Emperor looked around—fields stretched as far as the eye could see in every direction. Several farmers in short garments were working in the fields, and since the wheat had already been harvested, they were all turning the soil with hoes.

Not far ahead of the carriage stood a farm estate. A middle-aged man dressed as a eunuch hurried toward them at a trot, followed by a colonel in Embroidered Uniform Guard attire and several elderly men dressed as farmers.

The Ming dynasty's imperial estates began in the mid-dynasty period, first receiving the name "imperial estates" during the reign of Emperor Xianzong. After the eunuch Cao Jixiang's rebellion was put down, his lands were confiscated by the palace, and the establishment of imperial estates began. Emperor Xianzong's action opened the evil tide of the imperial house plundering land. Powerful consorts of the harem, princes, and relatives of the imperial family and meritorious officials all vied to imitate him. By now, in Beizhili alone, the land held by imperial estates accounted for one-seventh of all farmland. And all of this was land that paid no taxes to the government—such a vast area producing without paying levies invisibly increased the burden on the remaining common households. Moreover, within the imperial estates, land ownership was combined with judicial and administrative power. The management of imperial estates was extremely chaotic. Generally, eunuchs were sent to govern them; a eunuch would bring a banner of guards and keep a gang of ruffians, committing "land seizures, property extortion, and the defilement of women"—stopping at nothing.

The Chongzhen Emperor was still pondering when the group that had run out from the estate arrived before him. The eunuch at the lead was thin of frame, his face revealing a shrewd expression.

About ten paces from the Emperor, the crowd knelt to the ground. The eunuch reported in a shrill voice: "This slave Liu Chao, attendant of the Directorate of the Imperial Horses, and others kowtow to His Majesty!" The others who had knelt behind him only dared to knock their heads against the ground, not daring to speak. When the Emperor heard the name, his heart gave a start—it sounded familiar. In his memory, this man had ultimately died fighting for the state. The details were unknown to him, but the man did possess a heart of loyalty and righteousness.

"Rise!" the Emperor said, then strode toward the estate. Liu Chao and the others quickly got to their feet. Just as the Emperor and Luo Yangxing had walked several paces and they were about to follow, several Embroidered Uniform guards, faces cold, raised their scabbards to block the estate households who had come out to greet them, allowing only Liu Chao and the estate's colonel to pass.

Those farmers were terrified. Liu Chao put on a smiling face and said to Wang Cheng'en, who was lagging behind: "Eunuch Wang, these are the headmen of the imperial estate. When I am not here, they handle all matters of the estate, great and small. If His Majesty wishes to know anything about the estate, they understand it best. Better to let them follow along behind!" Wang Cheng'en glanced at him sidelong and said: "Are these men reliable? This concerns His Majesty's safety—this is a matter of utmost importance!"

Liu Chao hastily swore an oath: "Eunuch Wang, rest assured, they are all honest folk who have lived in the estate for generations. I can guarantee they are absolutely reliable!"

"Then let them follow! Remember, keep them at a distance—they may only approach when His Majesty summons them!" Wang Cheng'en said.

"Yes, yes, yes—just as you command, Eunuch!" Liu Chao hurriedly replied.

Wang Cheng'en had fallen behind precisely because he had matters to ask Liu Chao. Seeing that the Emperor was about to enter the estate, he quickened his pace, and Liu Chao hurried to keep up. Wang Cheng'en asked: "This morning His Majesty suddenly wanted to see the imperial estate. I sent word to you through someone—time was short. How have you prepared?"

"Let me report to you, Eunuch: the moment I received the message, I immediately had people clean the estate and sweep the finest house spotless! There simply wasn't time to lay yellow earth on the roads! As for the estate's farmers, I have told them not to go out and to remain at home. Only a few are still in the fields to make a show of things—if there were no one about at all, His Majesty would find it strange, wouldn't he?" Liu Chao answered with a smile plastered on his face.

"It will have to do! For now, we can only hope His Majesty overlooks such minor details—otherwise we could not bear the blame!" Wang Cheng'en said worriedly.

Liu Chao could not think of anything to say in response. He thought to himself: who could have expected His Majesty to suddenly want to see an imperial estate? And of all estates, he had to choose the one under my charge! Aside from sacrificial ceremonies, His Majesty never leaves the palace on ordinary days. What has gotten into him? Could he have read too many storybooks and want to imitate the incognito inspections in them? Of course, he only dared to think such things in his heart, never daring to speak them to anyone.

The Chongzhen Emperor, with Luo Yangxing, entered the estate at an unhurried pace. Dozens of paces around them were Embroidered Uniform guards bearing swords and spears. The estate was considerable in size—the houses were mostly built with yellow mud walls and thatched roofs. The roads were fairly level but quite narrow, with obvious signs of fresh paving. Many willow trees lined both sides of the road; judging by their girth, they had stood for many years, their green shade covering the ground while cicadas chirped.

"Have Liu Chao come forward to answer my questions!" the Emperor ordered. A guard beside him hurriedly ran toward the rear.

Before long, Wang Cheng'en brought Liu Chao up. When they arrived, Wang Cheng'en said: "Your Majesty, let Liu Chao lead the way to the house—you can rest while you question him?" The Emperor nodded. Liu Chao quickened his steps to lead the way, and after several turns they arrived near the center of the estate.

Before them stood a courtyard house—green bricks and black tiles, quite neat and tidy, though the gate tower was somewhat worn. The two large doors stood wide open, with two rows of guards already posted at the entrance, and even two guards bearing bows on the rooftop, warily scanning the surroundings.

Liu Chao arrived at the gate and reported with a bow: "Your Majesty, this is the headman's home in this estate. This slave has made all the arrangements—please enter and rest!"

The Emperor stepped into the courtyard. It was a single-courtyard residence. Facing him were three main rooms, with one wing room on each side. In one corner of the yard grew locust and jujube trees. The window paper on all the houses was spotless white—clearly just replaced. The courtyard was immaculate; the ground appeared to have been sprinkled with water, which had mostly evaporated, so that walking would not kick up dust.

The Emperor nodded and entered the main room. Inside, facing him, stood a brand-new carved rosewood table, upon which sat a set of blue-and-white porcelain tea ware. Behind the table was a huanghuali wood armchair, with several chairs arranged on either side. The Emperor knew this had been carefully prepared—such furniture was already extremely rare in a farm household.

The Emperor seated himself in the armchair and waved his hand: "All of you, sit. You must be weary after traveling half the day."

Wang Cheng'en and the others hurriedly said they dared not. The Emperor grew impatient and said: "When I tell you to sit, sit. Stop your prattling."

Only then did Luo Yangxing perch himself on one of the side chairs, daring to occupy no more than a third of it. Wang Cheng'en and Liu Chao would not dare to sit at all—Wang Cheng'en stood behind the Emperor, while Liu Chao stood off to one side, several paces away.

"Liu Chao, first give me a general account of this imperial estate," the Emperor began.

Liu Chao hastily straightened himself and reported: "This slave reports to Your Majesty: this estate is the largest of the four imperial estates under Your Majesty's name. It comprises over thirty thousand mu of farmland, with five hundred eighty-six households totaling two thousand seven hundred thirty-four persons—one thousand six hundred thirty-two adult males and one thousand one hundred two females, of which one thousand eleven are grown men."

"How much grain was produced last year? How many large livestock does the estate have? How is the land irrigated?" the Emperor continued.

"Reporting to Your Majesty: since the year before last, rainfall has been scarce, so harvests have been poor. Last year we produced over twenty thousand shi of wheat and over ten thousand shi of various miscellaneous grains, and delivered over twenty thousand shi of grain to the palace. We currently have forty-seven draft oxen and eighty-three mules and horses. Previously, irrigation relied mainly on the White Wave River outside the village, but since last year the river has gradually dried up. This slave had several wells dug to supply drinking water and irrigation for the estate." Liu Chao recited these figures as if counting family treasures—clearly he was ordinarily quite diligent in estate affairs.

The Emperor fell into thought upon hearing this. This Liu Chao handled matters with care—not like the eunuchs described in the materials he had seen in his previous life, who ran rampant through the countryside with gangs of thugs, lording over estates like emperors themselves. The grain output was also passable. After all, in this era there were no chemical fertilizers or pesticides—everything depended purely on heaven. A yield of one shi per mu was considered decent, and there were also miscellaneous grains, likely soybeans and their stalks.

"Why not plant corn and sweet potatoes?" The Emperor remembered that corn and sweet potatoes had been introduced to China during the Wanli reign. Had he remembered wrong?

"Forgive me, Your Majesty—are what Your Majesty speaks of also grains? This slave has never heard of them, let alone planted them!" Liu Chao said hastily. Even Wang Cheng'en and Luo Yangxing wore bewildered expressions.

The Emperor suddenly understood. In this age where information spread with extreme slowness, ordinary people's lives were confined to a radius of no more than ten li around them. The vast majority were illiterate—many people went from birth to death without ever visiting even the county seat, let alone anything beyond. How different from later ages, when if some celebrity had an affair, before he could even pull his pants back up, the whole world already knew about it online.

"Ignorance is no crime. The corn and sweet potatoes I speak of are both drought-resistant crops with extremely high yields. On the same single mu of land, if sweet potatoes are planted, the yield is several times—even dozens of times—that of wheat! After I return to the palace, I will send people to investigate. If these can be promoted throughout the whole Great Ming, then there will be no more deaths from starvation in my Ming, and no more common folk forced from their homes and displaced by natural disasters! Luo Yangxing, this matter is entrusted to the Embroidered Uniform Guard. Upon returning, immediately arrange for guard stations everywhere to investigate the matter of corn and sweet potatoes. Whoever accomplishes this, I will reward handsomely!" The Emperor instructed Luo Yangxing, who hastily rose and bowed in acceptance, though inwardly he was dubious.

Liu Chao suddenly slapped himself across the face and said: "Your Majesty must be thirsty! This slave was so busy answering questions that I forgot to brew tea and pour water for Your Majesty!" With that, he went out and called for someone.

Wang Cheng'en followed him out and said to Liu Chao: "His Majesty's personal tea set is carried by the guards—yours won't be needed. Just arrange for someone to boil water." Having said this, he waved at a guard, who immediately followed the estate headman in charge of boiling water into the kitchen. Liu Chao suddenly realized and said with a face full of smiles: "This slave has lost his wits—how could I dare let Your Majesty drink from outside vessels."

At this moment, the Emperor walked out of the house with his hands clasped behind his back, Luo Yangxing following behind. The Emperor instructed Liu Chao: "Take me around for a look!" Liu Chao acknowledged and led the way out of the courtyard.

The village was utterly silent, as if empty of people. Zhu Zhenqing was surrounded on all sides by dozens of guards, each on high alert, their eyes warily sweeping the surroundings. Occasionally, behind tightly shut doors, pairs of curious eyes could be seen peering at Zhu Zhenqing's party.

The Emperor naturally knew what was going on, but he also knew that as emperor, it was unrealistic to chat warmly with the common folk the way leaders had in his previous life. The people in such an enclosed environment would cower even before the estate headman, let alone the emperor. Since Liu Chao had already made the arrangements, there was no need to put on a show of closeness with the people. What he could do was strive to make their lives better—that was the fundamental thing, not putting on a false display of solicitous concern.

Following the village's main road for about a quarter of an hour, they arrived at the western edge of the village. Looking out, a small river lay a few hundred meters beyond the village. Due to the continuous drought, the river had nearly dried up—the riverbed was largely exposed, with only a small stream still flowing slowly through the middle. The trees along the riverbank were nonetheless lush and green, for plant roots could extend deep underground and fully absorb groundwater moisture.