Chapter 81: Testing the Blade, Following the Predecessors' Old Ways

Zhu Yijun held the memorial in his hand, looking around in astonishment.

Naturally, there was no need for anyone else to answer this; he was merely talking to himself in his surprise.

This move by Li Chunfang was truly beyond Zhu Yijun's expectations.

Sliding to his knees was one thing—if he had just gone home to retire, no one would have pursued him—but why come forward and try to send his own granddaughter into the palace!?

Setting aside the ancestral law that the Emperor does not marry into high-ranking, powerful families—when there is a dispute between monarch and minister, one considers ancestral law; when there is a consensus, no one cares about it.

Yet for a family of such civil service lineage, becoming imperial in-laws is not a good choice.

By the customs of the dynasty, although imperial in-laws can participate in the imperial examinations, they are not granted official posts; even if they pass, they can only hold the title of *jinshi* while fishing and farming at home.

Although Li Chunfang's three sons were good for nothing, he still had grandsons and great-grandsons.

As a former Senior Zhang Gelao, as long as his descendants flourished, they could always manage to hold sway in a region.

Historically, Li Chunfang's descendants flourished into a prominent family in Xinghua, frequently producing Provincial Governors and Ministers; they were no worse off than imperial in-laws.

So, what exactly was Li Chunfang thinking?

Zhu Yijun sat cross-legged on a meditation cushion, lost in thought.

Zhang Hong served him carefully, speaking in a low voice: "Your Majesty, should this memorial be sent to the Grand Secretariat?"

Seeing Hai Rui's secret memorial had been sent directly by the Embroidered Uniform Guard to the Directorate of Ceremonial; whether or not to send it to the Grand Secretariat was another matter.

Zhu Yijun looked up at Zhang Hong, not answering for a moment.

After pondering for a while, he shook his head: "First, go and invite the Senior Zhang Gelao and Mr. Zhang to come over."

It was better to hold a small meeting for such major matters.

He found it inconvenient to make his intention to split Nanzhili public.

Regardless of how Xu Jie or Li Chunfang had guessed it, he himself certainly could not admit to it.

Some things, if left unsaid, are matters controlled by people; once spoken, it is the matters that control the people.

However, it was still necessary to discuss it with the Grand Secretariat.

For one, he did not know Li Chunfang well enough and was not quite sure of the man's thoughts and intentions.

Zhang Juzheng and Li Chunfang were both *jinshi* from the twenty-sixth year of Jiajing, classmates in the same cohort, and both served in the Grand Secretariat.

Gao Yi, on the other hand, had been a long-time colleague of Li Chunfang in the Ministry of Rites.

They could all be considered well-acquainted.

Consulting with each other—three cobblers are better than one Zhuge Liang, after all.

For another, such a major matter naturally could not be decided by hiding away in the West Garden.

Under Zhu Yijun's intentional or unintentional influence, a political atmosphere had already been created for both inside and outside the court where major matters would be discussed with the ministers.

This kind of political mutual trust was a rare thing, and he would not easily break this tacit understanding.

Hearing this, Zhang Hong reminded him: "Your Majesty, the Prince of Hongnong and the Prince of Kuaiji did not survive this winter. Today, Zhang Gelao Gao and Imperial Son-in-law Xu went to the various temples and shrines on Your Majesty's behalf to perform funeral rites."

Zhu Yijun said "Oh," having truly forgotten about that.

When a Prince of the Blood passes away, by custom, court is suspended and funeral rites are held.

Although they did not die on the same day, to save effort, they were grouped together.

After all that busyness, Gao Yi would certainly have no time today.

Zhu Yijun waved his hand, signaling to go invite Zhang Juzheng first.

Even if court is suspended, one must still be on duty at the Grand Secretariat, so the man would naturally be there.

Since the Grand Secretariat was quite far from the West Garden, Zhu Yijun had specially bestowed sedan chairs upon the several Grand Secretaries.

The so-called "bestowed sedan chairs inside the East Flowery Gate" were a well-worn method for buying people's hearts, but it was precisely because they were useful that they were well-worn.

During the New Year's grace, only four Grand Secretaries received this honor; although all four repeatedly submitted memorials to decline, every time they traveled from the Grand Secretariat to the West Garden through the Forbidden City, they still sat in them quite steadily.

Other ministers, looking at the characters carved on the Grand Secretaries' sedan chairs, were even more envious—to prevent the Grand Secretaries from mistaking their chairs, the Emperor had thoughtfully carved the characters "Pillar of the State," "Teacher and Guardian," "Assistant of Governance," and "Great Virtue" to distinguish them.

Privately, they all said it was a pity not to be able to obtain even one character.

Just like that, Zhang Juzheng was invited from the Grand Secretariat to the West Garden.

Zhu Yijun did not intend to hold the audience at Wan Shougong; instead, he timed it, waited a little while, changed into casual clothes, and headed to the Chengguang Hall outside the Qianming Gate.

Chengguang Hall was formerly the Yitian Hall; after the Ming Chengzu renovated it, he gave it a new name, meaning to inherit and continue the bright light.

The Buddhist statues originally enshrined there had been moved out one after another by Zhu Yijun, and it had become the place where he received outside ministers.

At this time, Zhang Juzheng was already waiting outside Chengguang Hall.

"Your Majesty." Zhang Juzheng performed the salute.

Zhu Yijun hurriedly held his hands and helped him up: "Senior Zhang Gelao, there is no need for such formalities. Is your father's health any better?"

A natural, casual greeting, always effective.

Zhang Juzheng was pulled along, half a step behind the Emperor, as they entered the hall together: "I thank Your Majesty for your concern on behalf of my father. The physician said it is an old ailment of the lungs; after taking medicine and passing the winter, he will be fine."

Zhu Yijun couldn't help but glance at Zhang Juzheng.

An old ailment meant a chronic illness, the kind that medicine cannot cure.

Lifespan is determined by Heaven; in this era, there was basically no way to treat chronic lung disease, he just feared... dying at the wrong time.

If a father passes away, one must return home to observe three years of mourning.

Zhu Yijun could not afford to lose a Senior Zhang Gelao who could control the situation; now that the two of them were working hand in hand, it was not easy to replace him.

This actually reminded him.

Before the next winter comes, he must bestow more grace and build a few warm rooms for the residences of Zhang's father, Gao Yi, and others.

The two arrived in the hall, Zhu Yijun bestowed a seat upon Zhang Juzheng, and signaled for Zhang Hong to hand over Seeing Hai Rui's memorial.

He sat slowly behind the imperial desk, waiting for Zhang Juzheng to read it slowly, saying: "Li Chunfang's meaning is to let the central government show mercy."

"He and those behind him will throw out a few of the rebellious thorns, and also release control over the salt administration, concede a portion of the grain tax, thirty percent of the tea levy, and..."

Zhu Yijun paused, saying in a tone of helplessness: "And send his granddaughter into the palace."

Zhang Juzheng was multitasking; while listening to the Emperor, his eyes were carefully reading the memorial.

He did not answer immediately, but said with an unhappy expression: "Your Majesty, the memorial should have been copied for the Grand Secretariat once it reached the Office of Transmission; how could it have been sent directly to the Directorate of Ceremonial?"

Although Zhang Juzheng was very satisfied with the Emperor's current growth, the things that the Grand Secretariat should fight for still had to be fought for.

This had nothing to do with personal feelings; one must do what one must do in one's position.

Zhu Yijun hurriedly begged for mercy: "It was the Transmission Commissioner He Yongqing who was ignorant of the situation; I have already reprimanded him. Senior Zhang Gelao, please calm yourself."

Whether it was true or not, since he said so, it could only be that the Office of Transmission was ignorant.

Hearing this, Zhang Juzheng nodded.

He was merely stating his stance and pointing out the normal procedure.

After all, the matters in this memorial were not suitable to be made public, so it was normal to have some concealment; at least he, Zhang Juzheng, had not been kept in the dark.

Zhang Juzheng closed the memorial, deliberated for a moment, and then said: "Does Your Majesty have a decision on the matter Li Chunfang mentioned?"

Whether the Emperor wanted the Grand Secretariat to cooperate or intended to discuss it with him, Zhang Juzheng would naturally take a different attitude depending on the choice.

Zhu Yijun shook his head: "I am not well-versed in political affairs and was just about to ask for the Senior Zhang Gelao's opinion."

"However... with this result, I am inclined to sound the retreat."

Now that the central government had expressed its determination, some people in Nanzhili had made concessions.

But to say that these people would all stretch out their necks to be slaughtered, the answer was naturally negative.

If the negotiations collapsed this time, it would probably be difficult to clean up the mess later.

Up to now, the counterattack from Nanzhili had only been a tentative probe; if they truly tore off the mask, it would not be so simple.

At that time, it would probably be that not a single grain of tribute grain could enter the capital, the Japanese pirates in Songjiang Prefecture would burn, kill, and loot again, and the gentry and commoners would kill officials to demonstrate.

In a sense, it was not the central government's local faction or the high officials of Nanzhili who represented Nanzhili.

Rather, it was based on the broad demands of the people that there was soil for these officials to represent Nanzhili.

The so-called "broad" included merchants, landlords, farmers, minor officials, low-ranking officials, and so on.

It was precisely because of the broad demands of these people that the so-called high officials could represent a region.

It did not mean that if you killed all these leaders, Nanzhili would be peaceful.

Just like An Lushan of the Tang Dynasty, the soil for his existence lay in the broad demands of Hebei.

Even if he were captured and killed, it would not prevent Hebei from pushing out other spokesmen to stir up trouble for decades.

If Zhu Yijun were to harden his heart now and plow through all the high officials and nobles of Nanzhili, not only would it be of no help, but it would also destroy the tax base, and the world would fall into chaos in the blink of an eye.

Therefore, since these spokesmen had bowed their heads, it was time to talk.

Let each side concede a little; we must endure for the sake of the country.

In his previous life, for the tax reform, didn't they also have to let the Zhu family go south to negotiate slowly?

That is the logic.

So Zhu Yijun had never thought that killing all these so-called spokesmen would allow him to manipulate Nanzhili.

It was just that Xu Jie had not played by the rules, forcing him to show his determination to these people.

Now that they had given chips above his psychological price, it was not impossible to give these people some face.

This trip was for money.

Now that the money was in hand, there was no need to create extra complications.

Zhang Juzheng was noncommittal and asked again: "Then what about the conditions proposed by Li Chunfang?"

Zhu Yijun looked at Zhang Juzheng and consulted him: "I don't know Li Chunfang; would the Senior Zhang Gelao mind sharing your opinion?"

He answered with a question, wanting to hear Zhang Juzheng's opinion.

Zhang Juzheng did not shy away and said heavily: "Li Chunfang is not honest; he is testing!"

Zhu Yijun was startled.

He leaned forward and asked in confusion: "Testing?"

Zhang Juzheng nodded: "He is testing whether, after this incident, Your Majesty's situation..."

"Has encountered the vigilance of the Grand Secretariat, has been met with dissatisfaction from the two palaces, or has caused a rift between monarch and minister!"

Zhu Yijun was frowning in thought.

After hearing Zhang Juzheng's words, a flash of inspiration suddenly struck him.

He slapped his thigh: "No wonder he wants to send his granddaughter into the palace!"

Zhang Juzheng cast an approving look; he was indeed quick to understand.

He continued: "If Your Majesty had suffered too much resentment this time."

"Under the opposition of the court officials and the two palaces, it would be impossible to allow his granddaughter to enter the palace."

"He wants to see if everyone will... fear Your Majesty's early personal rule!"

Zhu Yijun was silent.

According to his previous thoughts, he had at most thought that Li Chunfang had slid to his knees too quickly.

Now that he had been enlightened, he couldn't help but sigh—these people were almost becoming spirits!

Sending his granddaughter into the palace was actually completing the selection process ahead of time.

This matter could be said to have a hundred benefits and no harm for the Emperor.

As long as there was enough support around the Emperor, she could be taken into the harem at any time.

And the Emperor's grand wedding had great significance—getting married basically meant personal rule!

Li Chunfang was deliberately handing a pillow to the Emperor to test the reactions of the court officials and the two palaces, thereby judging the situation of the central government.

If his granddaughter could not be sent into the palace, it meant that although everyone obeyed on the surface, once it involved the fundamentals, they still feared and opposed the Emperor.

In this situation, he would not have to become an imperial in-law, and he could also adjust his strategy toward the central government in a timely manner based on the situation.

And the so-called splitting of Nanzhili would become a delaying tactic.

Conversely, if the two palaces were happy and the court officials agreed, and his granddaughter was successfully sent into the palace.

That would mean the Emperor, having ascended the throne at a young age, had already grasped the overall situation and had not suffered too much resentment during this incident.

In this way, Li Chunfang would naturally slide to his knees as a matter of course, transform into an imperial in-law, and gamble on a century of wealth and honor.

Then the so-called splitting of Nanzhili would be him willingly acting as a pawn to share the Emperor's worries.

Yet this kind of hedging could not be blamed—he had already sent his granddaughter into the palace; wasn't this expression enough?

Truly a clever man.

Zhu Yijun continued along Zhang Juzheng's line of thought: "So, whether it is for outsiders to see or to reassure his own people, I have no choice but to accept this palace maid?"

Since Zhang Juzheng had pointed this out, it meant that at least he did not fear his personal rule.

A good Senior Zhang Gelao.

However... three years older, it always feels a bit strange; hmm, and a young girl, even stranger.

Zhang Juzheng nodded: "Even if Your Majesty simply does not want to accept Li Chunfang's kindness, outsiders will likely suspect whether you have encountered any resistance."

Stability overrides everything.

In order to give the various provinces and prefectures that were unclear about the situation a clear symbol, this matter should indeed not be refused.

Zhu Yijun shook his head helplessly; being played by Li Chunfang was one thing.

The problem was, what if she was incredibly ugly?

Zhang Juzheng seemed to see through the Emperor's thoughts and comforted him thoughtfully: "Your Majesty, rest assured, in our dynasty, if one doesn't have the look of an official, one cannot reach Li Chunfang's position."

Zhu Yijun understood Zhang Juzheng's meaning.

It was nothing more than the Emperor looking at faces; if she were too ugly, she wouldn't be able to reach the position of a court minister.

So the descendants wouldn't be too ugly.

Zhu Yijun reluctantly convinced himself to believe it, waved his hand in despair, and signaled that he could accept it.

He skipped over this matter and continued: "Then what does the Senior Zhang Gelao think of the splitting of Nanzhili initiated by Li Chunfang?"

Zhang Juzheng pondered for a moment and shook his head: "I think it is still a bit too hasty."

Li Chunfang was negotiating conditions, so he naturally made things sound better.

But standing in Zhang Juzheng's position, one could see at a glance that it was overly beautified.

He added: "Even if a Provincial Governor is carved out to split the taxes, it still has to go through the canal transport."

"The problem lies in the fact that the two Huai regions are now stuck in the hands of Nanzhili; it cannot be solved by simply carving out a Provincial Administration Commissioner."

"I fear that causing a backlash will instead ruin the taxes."

"Moreover, the so-called ten years of work is inevitably a bit exaggerated."

The two-hundred-year-old precedent of the dynasty had already penetrated into the bone marrow; it was simply not something that could be done in ten years.

Zhu Yijun heard Zhang Juzheng's words and nodded in agreement: "I have the same concerns."

"Li Chunfang is not sincere."

Sure enough, there were many clear-headed people; Zhang Juzheng saw at a glance that the man was exaggerating.

If the matter of splitting Nanzhili were truly placed on the table, it would inevitably cause an uproar—even Li Chunfang might not have lacked the intention of a warning.

Nanzhili was not without its positive aspects.

The Nanjing Six Ministries possessed a considerable portion of authority.

The assessment, appointment, removal, and promotion of low-level officials in the southern provinces were all directly handled by the Nanzhili Ministry of Personnel.

This greatly improved administrative efficiency.

Historically, the Nanzhili Ministry of War had directly dispatched troops to suppress rebellions many times, and the Ministry of Revenue could directly intercept the taxes of Jiangnan to use them for coordinating with the Ministry of War.

When the north was using troops, the south had always been a solid military backup.

It was also hard to say that these people, apart from self-interest, did not care about the country.

Even now, official documents were filled with phrases like "Nanjing is the foundation of the state," which was an indisputable second central government.

These were the sources of Nanzhili's legitimacy—an orthodox central government, positive administrative and military significance, and the taxes of most of the world as a backup, and so on.

Not to mention the landlords and gentry in the dark, and the literary families holding together, with deep roots.

Killing officials to rebel and then having another "Five-Person Tombstone Record" to seal the verdict was not a difficult thing.

The Japanese pirates currently stirring outside Songjiang Prefecture were proof.

Front and back, in the light and in the dark, Nanzhili had an imaginary community that could not be underestimated; splitting it would not be that simple.

After the later Jianzhou Jurchens killed so many people in Jiangnan, they still found that wanting to split Nanzhili would be a long-term endeavor.

This kind of thing could not be done just by Li Chunfang opening his mouth.

Zhang Juzheng looked at the Emperor and said: "Your Majesty, I think this matter can only be placed under a Provincial Governor in the seven prefectures like Fengyang Prefecture after opening the sea transport."

With the two Huai regions stuck by the throat, one's words would never be tough enough.

Now that spring had arrived, the Ministry of Works and Wang Zongmu had begun their second attempt at near-sea transport.

As long as the central government had the will, success would come sooner or later; there was no need to rush and tear off the mask with Nanzhili to snatch the tax sources of the seven prefectures.

Zhu Yijun nodded, acknowledging Zhang Juzheng's words.

Afterward, he changed the subject: "However, Li Chunfang's proposal is not without its merits."

Zhang Juzheng's heart stirred, and he hesitated: "Your Majesty's meaning is..."

Zhu Yijun suddenly stood up, reached out to take paper and pen, and set about drawing a map of Nanzhili.

He did not forget to instruct Zhang Hong on the side: "In the future, hang a map of the territory in the main hall."

After giving the instruction, he continued to lower his head and draw by hand.

In a few strokes, he drew the fourteen prefectures of Nanzhili and reached out to invite Zhang Juzheng to come forward and look.

"Adding the Ministry of Revenue Minister to the Provincial Governor is a bit too obvious, and the action is also too hasty."

"But the Senior Zhang Gelao's mention of canal transport just now reminded me."

"Take back the River-Operating Hai Yushi and the River-Operating Commander to the central government!"

Zhang Juzheng turned sideways, looking at the Emperor's strokes on the roughly drawn map, revealing a look of sudden realization.

The so-called Commander of River Operations was to lead river defense and drill soldiers.

One civil, one military.

Now the military side was held by the Marquis of Yongkang, Xu Qiaosong, who managed the Nanjing Right Chief Military Commission and commanded Nanjing river operations while also managing the river patrol and the commission.

The civil side was held by the Nanjing Censorate Right Assistant Hai Yushi-in-Chief, Zhang Lu, who commanded river operations and managed the river patrol.

Now the Emperor wanted to start with river defense.

Zhang Juzheng followed the Emperor's line of thought and asked: "Add a Provincial Governor?"

The two looked at each other.

Zhu Yijun pointed to the seven prefectures of Fengyang: "Commander of River Operations, concurrently Provincial Governor of Feng, An, Hui, Ning, Chi, Tai, and Guang, relocated to Anqing!"

This was an old trick that had already seen results; he naturally used it as soon as he took it.

Compared to adding a Ministry of Revenue Minister, bringing the Commander of River Operations back to the central government was much gentler.

First, the former was directly snatching tax sources, while the latter was military power.

It was only natural for the central government to reform military power.

Second, the former abruptly added a Ministry of Revenue Minister, which everyone would ponder, but the latter was already a mature system.

Changing the station and adding authority was not too sensitive.

Third, the Commander of River Operations was already in the hands of the nobles.

Unlike the civil officials who were of one mind, the nobles were relatively soft-boned and obedient—otherwise, only the Marquis of Huaining and the Duke of Wei would have sat and waited for death.

Furthermore, it was hard to say that the Marquis of Yongkang, Xu Qiaosong, would not be happy to have the river-operating system that relied on Nanzhili return to the central government's dispatch.

In short, this was more subtle than Li Chunfang's direct snatching of tax sources.

Zhang Juzheng pondered for a moment and also reached out to point at the map: "Then the money and grain must be directly intercepted from the Canal Transport Office."

With this, the military power of the inland waterways was directly brought back to the central government.

The Canal Transport Viceroy held the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal.

The Commander of River Operations guarded the Yangtze River.

Zhu Yijun said "Hmm": "Then let it be so. Tell Li Chunfang that if he can facilitate this, the Nanzhili matter is settled!"

As for the future... that would have to wait until the Commander of River Operations matter stabilized.

Zhang Juzheng nodded, stepped back a few paces, and performed a salute.

This meant that the Grand Secretariat also accepted this matter.

Just as he was about to leave, he suddenly remembered something and stopped his steps silently.

Zhang Juzheng looked up at the Emperor: "Your Majesty, how much silver can Hai Yushi Hai bring back this time?"

Hearing this, Zhu Yijun said excitedly: "I heard it is as much as one hundred thousand taels!"

Zhang Juzheng was stunned, then realized the Emperor was joking.

He sighed, stepped back, and just looked at the Emperor quietly.

Zhu Yijun smiled: "Call Minister Wang of the Ministry of Revenue to come, let's divide it and discuss it."

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 82 =====