[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-wanli-the-enlightened-emperor":3,"chapter-wanli-the-enlightened-emperor-wanli-the-enlightened-emperor-chapter-349":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Wanli, the Enlightened Emperor",{"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},2322171,4542,"Chapter 349: Unveiling the Hidden, Riding the Current","wanli-the-enlightened-emperor-chapter-349",349,"\u003Cp>If the conflict between north and south were mere illusion, the people of the south would not have flocked to support it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These newspapers have merely been seized; more veiled heretical texts circulate among the common folk.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From the replies of provincial governors and censors, to the investigations of the Embroidered Uniform Guard in the streets, and even the rumors gathered by imperial censors, all nearly agree on how fiercely the southern populace has risen in unified outrage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The propertyless commoners feel the pain acutely, eagerly hoping to halt the unjust policy of collecting southern taxes for northern use—each province, whether poor or rich, should simply manage its own affairs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Patrons in taverns loudly declare how their taxes feed northerners, and that when northerners meet them in future, they ought to call them “father” out of proper obligation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Students in academies repeatedly produce shocking writings, arguing that the empire should revert to the old Song practices: abandon the barren, irrelevant territories and spare the south from being drained to the bone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It is only because such speech remains confined to the people, lacking immediate urgency, that court officials pay it no heed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But now that it has been brought before the Wenhua Hall, it must be weighed carefully.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A light breeze stirred, and the south immediately began to churn with hidden currents—how could such ease be attributed to mere instigation by outsiders?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The emperor’s stance is also clear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Today, we shall use the heretical text case to settle the north-south conflict once and for all!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The ministers were lost in thought; the hall fell silent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, a voice rang out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your Majesty, I have something to say.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All turned to look.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Shixing stepped forward from the crowd, his expression resolute, as if ready to speak out for justice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cai Ruxian and Luo Zun exchanged glances and silently gave thumbs-up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The southerners truly are heroes—Wang Zongyi boldly confronted the throne, and now Shen Gancao, the conciliator, follows right after!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Such moral fortitude and dignity, arguing from principle and fearing no authority—how could the crude northerners like He Luowen and Ni Guangjian ever match them?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Yijun was also surprised by Shen Shixing’s boldness today.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He studied Shen Shixing carefully, then slowly nodded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Shixing, having received the emperor’s permission, immediately bowed and replied frankly: “The Grand Minister’s proposal and Your Majesty’s counter-question both fixate on whether the north-south conflict is born from within or stirred from without.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I hold that neither is correct—the north-south conflict is an addition!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Upon saying this, expressions in the Wenhua Hall varied widely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What did Wang Zongyi mean by “stirred from without”?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He meant the north-south conflict is a fabrication—that people were originally harmonious, but now some dissatisfied individuals have manufactured minor grievances to provoke discord; once the press is reined in, all will return to peace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The emperor clearly disagrees with this view; his counter-question is a clear declaration that the north-south conflict is an inherent dispute, born within this dynasty, not shaped by outside provocation, and now urgent enough to demand action.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for Grand Secretary Shen’s notion of “addition,” it clearly implies a different interpretation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The emperor seemed intrigued: “Addition? What do you mean by that?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One must admit, the Wanli reign has made coinage of new terms a trend—indeed, a cultural hallmark of the new policies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Shixing bowed again, solemnly stating: “Your Majesty, are you familiar with the Southern and Northern Examination Case?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hiss.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Southern and Northern Examination Case!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Those four words carried immense power—the cold air from the ice buckets in the corner was instantly sucked away by the courtiers’ collective gasps.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even Zhang Juzheng and Wang Xijue, who had avoided involvement in the debate, turned to look at Shen Shixing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Yijun’s expression showed no great change; he simply sat up straighter: “I am well aware. When I studied the Imperial Ancestral Instructions, my late father mentioned this case.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It was the Dingchou examination of the thirtieth year of Hongwu, when fifty-one jinshi, including Song Cong, were all southerners—none from the north.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“At the time, the entire empire erupted in uproar; the Hongwu Emperor, enraged by the bias, unleashed a massive case…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How could a proper imperial examination produce not a single northern jinshi?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Immediately, failed candidates appealed their injustice; northern military and civilians jointly submitted memorials; crowds wept along the streets, blocking sedan chairs to plead their case; over a dozen imperial censors vied to submit memorials, begging the emperor for a full investigation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The empire was thrown into chaos; the regional conflict between north and south exploded into full view.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Finally, the Hongwu Emperor, nearly in his coffin, personally intervened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The High Emperor not only executed numerous examiners, readers, and even the top-ranked jinshi, but in his fury, revoked all southern candidates’ degrees, then personally presided over a new examination, selecting sixty-one northerners—only then did the matter settle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet this is the official account; though largely accurate, its wording is far too restrained and neutral.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In truth, the controversy over this case was immense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Countless personal memoirs circulated among scholars and commoners.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In their assessments, there was often hidden discontent with the Hongwu Emperor’s actions, along with citations from classics to protest the injustice—naturally, the term “Southern and Northern Examination Case” was amended to “Southern and Northern Examination Injustice.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On one hand, southerners felt wronged by court suppression—examinations were based on merit; how could one be disqualified merely for passing?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Northerners failed simply because they were inferior in ability; perhaps they were inherently less capable—how could they dare complain?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If a single examination produced only jinshi over thirty, could those under twenty cry foul? Nonsense!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the other hand, there was fury over Hongwu’s punishment without instruction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If there was cheating, where was the evidence!?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Precisely because there was no evidence, they shamelessly accused the chief examiner of treason!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the end, it was all for the sake of so-called mediation!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This butcher of an emperor, to quell the northerners’ unreasonable uproar, raised his blade, slaughtered examiners, and expelled candidates!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What else could it be but an injustice!?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even in official histories, under the guise of straightforward recording, this meaning is subtly conveyed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the Zhu family’s oral tradition, which emphasized northern-southern boundaries, the story was entirely different.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for differences in scholarly standards between north and south, the Zhu family had no objection—during the Jiaxu examination of the twenty-seventh year of Hongwu, over a hundred candidates were selected, yet only twenty-some were northerners; the Hongwu Emperor himself admitted the imbalance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But three years later, suddenly not a single northerner was selected—could that possibly be reasonable!?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even then, the Hongwu Emperor still harbored doubts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Considering the balance of court politics and the need to quell public outcry, his first reaction was to appease.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Upon hearing the news, the Hongwu Emperor immediately issued an edict ordering court officials and the top three jinshi to re-examine the papers for cheating and add ten northerners.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The re-examiners were mostly southerners, and the top three jinshi themselves reviewed the papers and proposed additions—clearly, the emperor had left some room for compromise, hoping everyone would shake hands and make dumplings.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unfortunately, this goodwill seemed not to have been properly communicated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Despite the emperor’s explicit order to “add ten northerners,” the re-examination dragged on for a month and a half, ending in a conclusion no one expected: it did not comply with the imperial will!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Xin, the reader in charge of re-examination, reported that the southern candidates’ papers showed no irregularities whatsoever!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the contrary, the northern candidates’ papers were poorly written, riddled with taboo phrases—none could be added!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that time, a censor submitted a memorial accusing the chief examiner Liu Sanwu of instructing Zhang Xin to deliberately select the worst northern papers as evidence, refusing to add any—“He submitted inferior papers; Liu Sanwu and others are truly responsible.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet after prolonged debate, the examiners and re-examiners stubbornly clung to the claim that “procedures were followed.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If dissatisfied, one could re-examine again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The rest of the story is known to all—the Hongwu Emperor, though near death, was no benevolent ruler who cared for procedure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man waved his hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Xin and the other re-examiners were sentenced to death by slow slicing; Chen An, the former top jinshi who participated in the review, was torn apart by chariots; Liu Sanwu, the chief examiner, was directly accused of treason, spared death due to age, but his entire clan exiled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From the perspective of an emperor who governed the Nine Regions and shaped ten thousand generations, the executions were perfectly justified.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Evidence? Even the Three Judicial Departments didn’t require it in political cases—why demand it here?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Merely the lamentations of the defeated—laughable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, both emperor and ministers engaged in constant, overt and covert struggles over the final verdict; after generations, the balance remains even—official and unofficial histories stand side by side.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the emperor briefly recounted the events, Shen Shixing’s voice came as expected: “Your Majesty’s vast knowledge and memory are indeed correct.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Yijun made no comment, silently awaiting the next words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your Majesty, Grand Minister—is this case a north-south conflict?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Zongyi’s expression darkened; if it’s called the Southern and Northern Examination Case, what else could it be but a north-south conflict?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had just claimed the north-south conflict was baseless, and now Shen Shixing immediately cited this case—was he deliberately tilting the scales?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Several southerners also frowned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, some understood without words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For instance, Zhang Juzheng, who had previously collaborated seamlessly with Gao Gong to exclude Jiangxi officials after Yan Song, now sat like a statue, calm and composed—likely well-versed in its subtleties.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Those who understand, understand; Zhu Yijun, who did not, could only smile and ask: “I naturally regard this as a north-south conflict—do you, Shen Qing, think otherwise?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All eyes turned to Shen Shixing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Grand Secretary Shen straightened his body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under the gaze of all, he solemnly shook his head: “Your Majesty’s insight is profound. At the time, the world claimed ‘Chief Examiner Liu Sanwu favored his fellow southerners,’ yet Liu Sanwu, though a southerner, was neither from the same prefecture nor even the same province as Chen An or Yin Changlong—he did not even live nearby. This accusation is utterly baseless.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Moreover.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Did the so-called Southern List truly include candidates from all southern provinces? Sichuan, Huguang, and Nanjing each produced only one jinshi—how different is that from the north?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yet Jiangxi produced eighteen, Zhejiang seventeen, Fujian nine—these three provinces alone accounted for nine out of ten seats!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Is this a north-south divide?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Chief Examiner Liu Sanwu was from Huguang—how could he abandon his own region to become the mastermind behind Jiangxi, Zhejiang, and Fujian dominating the list?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Here, “Jiang-Zhe” refers to Jiangxi and Zhejiang—the standard abbreviation in official documents.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Shixing paused, his head rising higher.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Behind him, Wang Xijue and Xu Guo exchanged glances, their expressions complex.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All present were from Nanzhili; they could not help but feel a shared unease.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Southern and Northern Examination Cases—no one knows which demon came up with that name.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Over these years, divisions have been drawn by region: Sichuan, Guangdong and Guangxi, Huguang—all of them, especially the Southern Directly Governed Region! Though it is the capital, it has reaped not a single benefit, yet absorbed countless slanderous names.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In contrast, the officials of the Three Provinces inside the hall wore expressions of deep embarrassment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Shixing ignored the glances his colleagues shot him, met the emperor’s gaze, and declared firmly: “Your Majesty, this is not a conflict between North and South, but a struggle among scholarly cliques!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The ministers in the hall froze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Scholarly cliques? What an ingeniously coined term.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet its meaning…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cai Ruxian and Luo Zun exchanged glances, then shook their heads in confusion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only Zhao Zhigao, the Director of the Imperial Academy standing at the very back, seemed to grasp something—he nervously scratched his neck, muttering to himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Luowen and the other northerners frowned, lowering their heads in deep thought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The emperor, meanwhile, stroked his chin, looking distinctly puzzled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Shixing bowed deeply again: “Your Majesty, while compiling the Great Ming Compendium, I gained a glimpse into the whole. Allow me to explain clearly!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Liu Sanwu is a great Confucian scholar of this age; all major court literary projects originate from his hand. He holds that an essay is useless unless it ‘embodies the Dao’ and ‘serves the times.’”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The so-called ‘Dao’ refers to the officially sanctioned orthodoxy of the time: Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“At that time, the transmission of Cheng-Zhu thought split into several schools; its orthodox lineage fell to the Jinhua School of Zhejiang, followed closely by the Chongren School of Jiangxi, and extending to Fujian—the ancestral home of Zhu Xi…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this point, someone could no longer hold back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhao Zhigao, Director of the Imperial Academy, felt the air was unbearably hot, drenched in sweat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before he could step forward, he frantically stretched out his neck and cried: “Grand Secretary Shen is mistaken! The Guan School of Shaanxi and the Hedong School of Shanxi are also orthodox heirs of the Dao!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How could one avoid discussing regional conflict and suddenly pivot to factional strife!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Shixing is from Suzhou and Songjiang—he should be standing shoulder to shoulder with us, not day after day speaking recklessly for the sake of some trivial reputation, placing Zhejiang in what position!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But this remark was clearly uttered in haste; Shen Shixing didn’t even deign to respond.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instead, the emperor resumed expounding on the views of the Confucian masters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Yijun chuckled: “I know a little about this. During the Yuan dynasty, northern schools of Daoism rapidly declined.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Take the Guan School: for a hundred years it floated aimlessly, like a rootless weed—until our dynasty, or rather, until now, when Xu Fuyuan, a Director of the Ministry of Revenue, took up the mantle of the Dao and revived it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Likewise, the Hedong School of Shanxi, which emphasized the unity of principle and vital force, was once deemed heterodox by the Daoist orthodoxy.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then there is the Miachi School of Henan, blending Zhu Xi’s teachings with Taiji theory, closely resembling Lu Jiuyuan’s Mind School.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“In short, when it comes to the orthodox Neo-Confucianism of that era, Jiangnan naturally led the way.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhao Zhigao fell silent, crestfallen, and withdrew.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The foremost of today’s eight great Daoist masters now sat upon the throne; the Grand Master’s own pronouncement on the schools left no room for argument.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moreover, his words were specific and detailed—though a Director of the Ministry of Revenue cannot attend court sessions, the naming of names clearly wasn’t idle speculation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The officials from Jiangsu and Zhejiang turned pale, forced to glare angrily at Shen Shixing as their only outlet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This man has turned neighbor into ditch—truly forgotten his roots!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Southern and Northern Examination Case was originally a frame-up concocted by the Hongwu Emperor; southerners should have simply cried foul together. But this man, to protect some negligible reputation of Suzhou and Songjiang, has stirred division within our ranks!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Shixing, of course, didn’t turn back: “Your Majesty’s insight as Grand Master is profound! Precisely because of this, the Southern and Northern Examination Case is less a North-South conflict than a struggle among scholarly cliques!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Indeed, the Hongwu Emperor began balancing scholarly cliques long ago, until the matter exploded fully in the thirtieth year of Hongwu!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Especially the Jinhua School of Zhejiang.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Song Lian was exiled for meddling in treason; his successor Su Bo’heng was executed for corruption; disciples Hu Han, Zhang Mengjian, Zheng Tao, and Xie Su—all several great Zhejiang Confucians—were later executed.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Even so, Fang Xiaoru of the Jinhua School—a man who repeatedly failed the provincial examinations—was repeatedly recommended to the Hongwu Emperor. Even after being ‘sent home with honors’ in the fifteenth year of Hongwu, he was recommended four more times by the Ministry of Revenue by the twenty-fifth year—and each time, the Hongwu Emperor dismissed him without exception!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Hongwu Emperor’s repeated rejections made clear the man’s lack of talent—especially since he couldn’t even pass the provincial exams in the early days of the dynasty; these exam-takers in the Hall of Literary Brilliance knew better than anyone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“In the twenty-sixth year of Hongwu, the Emperor decreed: ‘All Ministry of Revenue officials appointed after this year shall not be from Jiangnan, Zhejiang, or Suzhou-Songjiang,’ because at that time the Ministry had become a closed clique, appointing only fellow clansmen and excluding outsiders, drawing the ire of censors.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, this was an arbitrary order.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the second month of the second year of Jianwen, the new emperor immediately reversed it—Jiangxi, Zhejiang, and Suzhou-Songjiang men were once again permitted to serve in the Ministry of Revenue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the uncle ascended the throne and saw how many had perished in the Nanwu purges, he never revived the old decree.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“In the twenty-seventh year of Hongwu, Liu Sanwu was ordered to revise Mencius and reinterpret the classics.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“In the second month of the thirtieth year of Hongwu, in the first examination after the reinterpretation, Liu Sanwu drafted a list of forbidden phrases.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The Three Provinces knew these forbidden phrases well; the other provinces remained clueless. The Three Provinces treated it lightly, while countless examinees from other provinces violated them—so even when later reviews sought to restore candidates, they could not revive those who had broken the prohibitions.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“For years, the Southern and Northern Examination Case has been debated, yet no one has accused Liu Sanwu of cheating. I believe he was right—he merely upheld the orthodoxy of his school and judged papers impartially!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The officials of the Three Provinces looked as if they’d swallowed a fly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>We were discussing the heretical book case, yet after this debate, an old case was inexplicably dragged out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Shixing cited examples—why must he use such a public scandal? Unbecoming of a minister!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Grand Secretary Shen, are you making things up out of thin air?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Grand Secretary Shen must have gone mad from scheming for factional gain…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The ministers stirred, ready to roll up their sleeves and demand clarity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Xijue, Xu Guo, Yin Zhengmao, and others stepped forward in unison, taking positions behind and beside Shen Shixing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, Fan Yingqi, Right Vice Minister of Revenue and Director of the Granary System, suddenly stepped forward: “Gentlemen, these are all matters from the founding era—let us not take them personally. Let us return to the present.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The ministers turned back in astonishment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fan Yingqi wore the expression of an “excellent, independent Zhejiang man who feels no offense.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only then did they remember: because of the land survey dispute, this man and the Dong family had their ancestral graves dug up by their own townsfolk—he likely harbored nothing but bitter resentment toward his homeland!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A traitor among the Zhejiang men!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Cough.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A light cough interrupted the brewing dispute.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Yijun stopped stroking his chin and placed his hands back on his knees.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He ignored the discontent of the Three Provinces officials, leaned forward, and fixed his gaze on Shen Shixing: “So, Minister Shen, your meaning is this: although a North-South conflict exists, it is secondary—a mere facade masking the primary conflict. If I fixate on the North-South dispute, I will be putting the cart before the horse?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing the emperor’s concise summary, Shen Shixing exhaled deeply. He nodded heavily: “Your Majesty, precisely so!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The resurgence of the North-South conflict now is fundamentally a conflict over corvée and taxation!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The people of Jiangnan provinces are wealthy; those with ulterior motives seek to resist the land survey by inflating regional divisions, obscuring the truth, and using newspapers to incite unrest—thus, half the empire is swept up in confusion, giving rise to the illusion of a North-South conflict.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“These are my heartfelt words, Your Majesty—I humbly beg you to consider them!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Corvée and taxation conflict!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this point, Shen Shixing’s true intent was laid bare!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The ministers in the hall stared at the back of Grand Secretary Shen, their expressions varied.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Zongyi opened his mouth but fell silent, then quietly returned to his place.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The northerners frowned, pondering how their home regions’ tax resistance had flared and faded without serious consequence, and gradually relaxed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Xijue, Xu Guo, and other officials from Fengyang and Suzhou-Songjiang wore strained expressions, yet ultimately nodded in agreement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only a few turned pale, unable to control themselves.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The first round of debate had ended with Shen Shixing’s conciliatory compromise prevailing—his move carried the suspicion of betraying his own faction, yet no one could fault him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The emperor had invoked the heretical book case, leveraging the outrageous claims in the newspapers to stir discontent among the northern ministers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under the attempt by Shen Shixing’s faction to quell the matter, the northerners’ drive to trace the roots and unleash a purge was nearly exposed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Zongyi was a decent man; though he did not identify with his regional faction, he still stepped forward, trying to confine the emperor’s investigation to just a few newspapers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To this end, the Minister of Rites even resorted to invoking the emperor’s own mistaken policy of lifting press restrictions, forcing him to retreat one step.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the emperor easily deflected it—the emperor’s intent was sound; it was Li Chunfang who moved too hastily.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus, Shen Shixing retreated one step further.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The North-South conflict is merely a derivative secondary conflict, rooted in the primary conflict.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Southern and Northern Examination Case was, at its core, a struggle among scholarly cliques; the current heretical book case in the south is, at its core, a tax conflict triggered by the land survey.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus, launching mass prosecutions under the banner of the North-South conflict has gone too far.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instead, targeted, limited strikes should be made against certain gentry families opposed to the land survey.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From the reactions of Wang Xijue, Yin Zhengmao, Wang Zongyi, and other southerners, it was clear they accepted Shen Shixing’s retreat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for who exactly falls within this scope—that was understood without words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Grand Secretary of the Eastern Pavilion Wang Xijue stepped forward: “Your Majesty, Grand Secretary Shen’s words are reasonable.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Such heretical books will inevitably be caught by the law; punishing them according to statute is only proper.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But as the saying goes, one must have a just cause. If we launch mass prosecutions based on these heretical books inciting North-South division, and local officials then double down on the edicts, even ordinary civilians and scholars who merely complain will be dragged into it—precisely what the rebels desire!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Let us follow Grand Secretary Shen’s suggestion: only interrogate a few publishing houses and uncover the powerful families behind them meddling in state affairs.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The incited commoners are surely innocent; the small landowners who complain are not to blame; the scholars who wrote the heretical books may be forgiven.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only the powerful families obstructing the land survey must be struck with full force!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, whether this is the true situation doesn’t matter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The most pragmatic goal is to use this opportunity to crush the powerful families and clear the obstacles to the land survey.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unfortunately,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>it did not seem to hit the emperor’s sweet spot.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After hearing this, the emperor sat in thought for a long while, still offering no response.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the emperor’s intermittent murmurs filled the hall, the ministers’ heartbeats tightened in unison.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Shixing and Wang Xijue exchanged glances, their fear unmistakable—could it be that the emperor, because of these newspapers stirring trouble, had developed a prejudice against southerners?!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The atmosphere inside the Wenhua Hall grew increasingly tense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No one knew how long it had been.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Yijun finally spoke, smiling warmly: “Secondary contradictions are always rooted in primary contradictions. Your thinking is sound, your reasoning correct—Shen Qing has clearly mastered the dialectics of the Doctrine of Principles.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Civil officials never lack the ability to debate classics—it’s just a matter of which texts they hold as canonical.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If the state orthodoxy upholds Cheng-Zhu, then the Golden Throne becomes a place to rigidly defend the Three Bonds and Five Constants; if it adopts Lu-Wang, then the Wenhua Hall becomes a space for self-verified insight; and when the Eight Great Masters’ Doctrine of Principles emerges, understanding virtue and principle becomes essential background for high-ranking officials.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Shixing was in his prime, and among scholars, he excelled in studying the classics.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Southern and Northern Examination Scandal was, at its core, a struggle between scholarly cliques.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whether tracing faint clues in historical records or hastily speculating to manage the current situation, both are deeper than mere regional rivalry.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tenants in the south remain landless; powerful families in the north still command the winds and rains.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This is the fundamental difference—horizontal or vertical.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Extend this further.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The dispute over the capital’s location, the post-Yan Song cabinet’s tacit suppression of Jiangxi officials—all are struggles over political resources.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Xiaomiao’s cessation of the Central Law, Longqing’s opening of the seas, Wanli’s salt administration, and even today’s land survey—all fundamentally boil down to disputes over tax allocation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All these phenomena have their roots not in regional differences, but merely manifest as regional conflicts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Having analyzed it to this extent, Zhu Yijun could not help but lavish praise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet, there were clear signs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though the Emperor had affirmed his point, the ministers’ expressions were far from pleased.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because whenever such phrasing begins, a sharp turn inevitably follows.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As expected.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Yijun, lost in thought, spoke again: “The Doctrine of Principles has evolved rapidly of late—Shen Qing, you’ve fallen behind.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Last summer, Yuan Hongyu wrote a new essay exposing Li Zhi’s errors, one of which was:”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“When conditions are sufficient, primary and secondary contradictions can transform into each other.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The north-south conflict is indeed rooted in the distribution of interests, but in the course of development and change, signs of the secondary becoming primary are emerging.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Emperor pressing this so relentlessly was truly frightening!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cai Ruxian, Zhao Zhigao, and others turned pale.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even Wang Guoguang, who stood outside the fray, could not help but urge: “Your Majesty’s argument risks dividing the state!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When spoken by the Emperor, such words carry entirely different implications.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Yijun turned to look at Wang Guoguang.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He shook his head gently, softening his tone: “Shen Qing’s doctrine can explain the origins of the north-south conflict, but it is far too weak to serve as a basis for governance.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Yijun paused: “Shen Qing says the Southern and Northern Examination Scandal was not a regional conflict but a struggle between scholarly cliques—I find no fault in that.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Let us speak plainly: Liu Ji, Ye Chen, Zhang Yi, and the Four Masters of Eastern Zhejiang—led by Song Lian—were openly recognized as a regional faction, once standing on equal footing with the Huai-Western clique of Li Shan Chang, Xu Da, and Tang He. With such literary luminaries leading them, the Southern and Northern Examination Scandal was hardly surprising.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But what of what came after?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“In the first year of Hongxi, two separate examination lists were established—sixty percent of candidates from the south, forty percent from the north.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“After Xuande, the system changed to three lists: south, north, and central; in the early Jingtai period, it was abolished entirely, then restored.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“In the twenty-second year of Chenghua, the Grand Secretary Wan An and the Minister of Rites Zhou Hongmo, both from Sichuan, favored their home region by reducing southern and northern quotas by two each, adding them to the central list.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“In the second year of Hongzhi, the old system was restored.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“In the third year of Zhengde, the eunuch Liu Jin, from Shaanxi, ordered each region to take 150 candidates; after Liu Jin’s execution, the original system was restored.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Shen Qing, the examination disputes have stretched over a hundred years—could this, too, be merely a struggle between scholarly cliques?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Faced with the Emperor’s meticulous recitation, Shen Shixing had no reply.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once the examination scandal was definitively labeled the Southern and Northern Examination Scandal, it was inevitable it would evolve into a regional conflict.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Emperor, perhaps deeply moved, sighed heavily: “Too many people harbor centuries of hatred—not for profit, but merely to win a single point of pride.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Primary and secondary contradictions transform into each other.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Day after day, reciting in the Wenhua Hall, “Ah, the north-south conflict is fundamentally a class conflict—don’t confuse the root with the branch,” solves nothing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When ancestral enmity elevates regional conflict into the primary political contradiction, it is commonplace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under such circumstances, the tried-and-true method of analyzing interests immediately fails.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Yijun glanced at the newspaper beside him; at first glance, he nearly mistook its name for “Ji Mu Xinwen Bao”—though the name didn’t matter; it was just like these newspapers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Southern publishers printing newspapers like “I, Hate Northerners” is perfectly reasonable; but if He Luowen told jokes about southerners or invented “Regulating the South” games, it would be treason.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Don’t be fooled by Wang Zongyi’s soothing words—he turned a blind eye to the former, yet was the first to step forward and admonish He Luowen when he retorted, warning him not to foster north-south division.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Interests spark conflict, conflict breeds hatred, hatred defines identity, identity consolidates power.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No matter how much you disdain a certain kind of contradiction, once both sides identify enemies by identity and begin consolidating power, it becomes the undeniable, urgent contradiction of the moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once power is consolidated, conflict becomes inevitable—the outside world has already reached the point where newspapers openly proclaim “Southern Dynasty, Northern Emperor.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every time the Wenhua Hall attempts to mediate, it merely allows the contradiction to escalate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Yijun’s gaze swept over the ministers in the hall; he slowly closed his eyes and leaned back in his throne: “Too many people fight for pride.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Wang Zhongsu, Minister of Personnel during the Chenghua era, served seven reigns and assisted six emperors, universally regarded as detached, aloof, and lofty.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Even Emperor Yingzong respectfully called him ‘Old Wang’—a testament to his prestige.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yet even this man, since taking charge of Personnel, subtly but deliberately ‘disliked southerners and favored northerners.’”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What interest was he fighting for? Wasn’t it merely pride?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“When Yao Kui succeeded him, he openly declared, ‘I will oppose Wang Ao at every turn,’ and blatantly ‘favored southerners.’”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Angry courtiers secretly carved hateful verses on the carved railings outside the Huangji Hall: ‘Cut off Yao Kui’s head, offer it at Wang Ao’s tomb’—wasn’t that still about pride?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Jiao Fang went even further, willing to collude with eunuch Liu Jin just to vent this pride.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He routinely declared, ‘Never again allow Jiangxi men to be overused’; he ‘rejoiced every time a southerner was removed, even when discussing ancient figures, he always denounced southerners and praised northerners’; he even openly declared he would personally strike down the Jiangxi-born Grand Secretary Peng Hua outside the Qianbu Corridor.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“And now, in this very hall, you divide into north and south, openly quarreling—isn’t that all because you carry a single grudge in your hearts?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Yijun did not wish to speak too deeply.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The division between east and west since the Three Dynasties, the transition to the north-south rivalry, the southward shift of economic focus since the Yongjia Migration—these were not matters that could be explained in a day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Especially since geography determines resource endowment, which then rises to real-world conflict—areas even the New Learning had not touched.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rather than explaining to ministers that interest-based conflict is rooted in geography, it was better to speak plainly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Use countless precedents to show that regional conflict is a widespread, pervasive ideology—even if originally secondary, it has now become an undeniable primary contradiction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In short.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This demon-book case must be elevated to the level of a north-south conflict—no mediator can stop it! The Emperor said so!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Southern officials saw the Emperor’s unyielding stance and fell silent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Shixing felt a heavy weight in his chest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He glanced at Wang Xijue, who met his gaze with equal helplessness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Shixing silently turned his head, fixing his eyes on Zhang Juzheng.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alas, the Grand Secretary was unusually silent—even now, he stood like a statue at the head of the left line, saying nothing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With no help forthcoming, Shen Shixing instinctively turned back, only to see the eager hope in Cai Ruxian’s eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Shixing felt even more helpless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With no other option, he raised his tablet flat and bowed again: “Your Majesty! It is easy to break bandits in the mountains; it is hard to break the bandits in the heart.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The demon-book case can be easily traced—but the pride you speak of among northern and southern subjects? It cannot be erased in a moment.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your Majesty, please reflect!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Zongyi proposed stopping at the publishers; the Emperor firmly rejected it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He and Wang Xijue made minor concessions, offering powerful families as sacrifices—but the Emperor remained unsatisfied.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then what should be done? What did the Emperor truly intend to accomplish through the demon-book case?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Was he targeting the Southern Directly Governed Region? But the Six Counties Silk Case had already laid the groundwork—no need for such theatrics.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Was he planning to alter the quota of jinshi from north and south?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or restore Hongwu’s ancestral system, barring Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Suzhou-Songjiang men from the Ministry of Revenue?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or codify the unwritten rule that no Jiangxi man shall rise to the Grand Secretariat?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or was he preparing to emulate Zhu the Fourth, leading northern ministers to crush the south?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this thought,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Shixing instinctively looked up at the Emperor, seeking clues in his expression.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the Emperor’s face was amused; he nodded calmly: “It is easy to break bandits in the mountains; it is hard to break the bandits in the heart… Shen Qing, your words are golden!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Since ascending the throne, though I dwell in the north, I have treated southern subjects with equal fairness—yet now I am still labeled the Northern Emperor in this demon book.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Even if I pursue illegal publishers or arrest the powerful behind them, it will not quell this pride—it will only become proof that I, the Northern Emperor, am harming southern subjects, pouring oil on the fire.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“When two sons in a household are at such odds, what can this unworthy old man do?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Shixing stared at the Emperor’s expression, a terrible premonition rising in his chest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What did he mean by “dwelling in the north”?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He suddenly looked up—at Zhang Juzheng, Zhu Xixiao, and others who had just been restored to office!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why had the Emperor, contrary to all precedent, urgently summoned Zhang Juzheng back to the capital?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why had he begun neglecting sleep and meals, scheduling every major and minor matter of court and palace for next year?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why had he clung so tightly to the north-south conflict?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Li, originally ordered to tour the southern fields, was redirected to Henan; Zhu Xizhong, the Marquis of Cheng, returned to court after six years of silence; Hai Rui was summoned back to Beijing; Yin Shidan, entangled in the Shandong peasant unrest, received not even a reprimand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One matter after another flashed through his mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Shixing’s thoughts were chaotic, churning without end.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unconsciously, he had linked together every odd clue from these recent days!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A sudden flash of insight!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He suddenly realized—he looked up in shock at the throne: Was His Majesty planning to…?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Shixing’s pale lips trembled, or perhaps fluttered, as if trying to speak.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But before Shen Shixing could speak to cut off the Emperor’s words, Fan Yingqi had already moved ahead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The case of the demonic book has stirred resentment across north and south, shaking the very foundation of the state—this cannot be taken lightly! Now that matters have reached this point, I dare to suggest…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fan Yingqi stepped forward boldly, prostrated himself on the ground, and cried out loudly: “I humbly beg Your Majesty to undertake a southern tour, to quell the turmoil and end the strife!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Wenhua Hall fell instantly silent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone was stunned, their minds ringing with confusion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Southern what?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What tour?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A southern tour!?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only Zhu Yijun slowly rose from his throne and exhaled deeply: “Ah, very well. I have sat in the north for twenty years and have never set foot in the south.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His words came as if rehearsed, effortlessly seizing the momentum!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he spoke, the Emperor turned from behind the imperial desk and stepped toward the side hall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Yijun, with his back to the ministers, waved his hand: “In August, once the imperial heir is born, I shall journey to the south.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without giving anyone a chance to react, he finished speaking and vanished into the Wenhua Hall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It is settled. Dismissed.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only the faint echo of his words lingered in the ears of the stunned, speechless ministers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",6116,"2026-06-20T16:31:35.124Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","17a3806fbb36ad577219c07f5ee5b365a3793bf9495ab8774d4e1f0a3a417c97","wanli-the-enlightened-emperor-chapter-350","wanli-the-enlightened-emperor-chapter-348",375,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fwanli-the-enlightened-emperor-cover.jpg"]