Daming talker

Chapter 702 Why don’t you cooperate?
After having some initial ideas, Emperor Wanli summoned the eunuchs from the Imperial Household Department for consultation.

As the emperor was high above, he was often not clear about many details of the lower levels, so he needed the eunuchs of the Imperial Household Department to provide reference opinions.

This is also why the eunuchs in the Imperial Household Department have a very high requirement for cultural level. Without some culture, they really cannot respond to the emperor's consultation, unless they are called Wei Zhongxian.

When Emperor Wanli laid out these recent memorials and expressed his interest in directly intervening in personnel matters, he was first poured a bucket of cold water.

Zhang Cheng, the eunuch in charge of the seal, said honestly, "Some people are asking for the emperor's judgment and making exceptions, but in fact they just want to take advantage of the emperor to fish in troubled waters."

Huh? Emperor Wanli was slightly stunned. He was just thinking about what was going on, but he didn't expect that there was such an angle to the problem.

Zhang Cheng, a senior eunuch, said whatever he wanted to say in front of the emperor. He continued to explain very bluntly:
"It may be that there are some people in the court who are afraid that they cannot defeat their opponents through means such as imperial recommendation, so they want to lure the emperor to come to the fore."

Anyway, we are just pointing out that someone wants to use the emperor as a gun. As for whether Your Majesty wants to be a gun, it is up to you.

Emperor Wanli pondered for a while and then said: "If there is no suitable candidate for the next Minister of Personnel according to the convention, and we have to make an exception to select one, then I must make the decision on my own."

This means that if the customary rules are followed, the court officials themselves can nominate candidates.

But if you want to make an exception, I can't do it without you. Only the emperor has the power to make exceptions.

Just like carrying out reforms, if there is no support from the emperor, the reforms will not be possible.

Then all the eunuchs understood that the emperor just wanted to have some fun.

So Zhang Cheng made a prudent suggestion: "Any exception must have a reason and basis, and will certainly be opposed.

How could the emperor disregard his dignity and debate with his subjects in person? He should first send the relevant memorials to the court officials for discussion, let the officials argue the truth first, and then the emperor can quote them selectively.

If those who want to bring about His Majesty's downfall can't even explain the truth clearly, then His Majesty won't have to pay any attention to these useless people who can't accomplish anything."

Emperor Wanli nodded and said, "Yes, this is safer."

At this time, the eunuch Chen Ju had to step forward and remind him: "The Minister of Personnel Wang Shizhen is seriously ill and bedridden. Your Majesty must not ignore it.

An imperial edict should be issued first to comfort Wang Shizhen, and the imperial physician should be ordered to go and treat him and give him medicine, so as to uphold the loyalty between the monarch and his subjects.

Then let the court officials discuss the relevant matters, this is in line with human nature."

The old God is still sick. If we don’t even go through the superficial procedures like expressing condolences and giving medicine, and instead just discuss “afterlife affairs”, isn’t that a bit too cold and indifferent?
Aren’t you afraid that other important officials of the court will see this scene and become even more disappointed with you, Old Zhu?
Emperor Wanli said "Oh" and then he realized that it was no wonder that he always felt that something was missing. It turned out that he forgot to express his condolences.

"You go and do it, and ask the Imperial Hospital to go as well." Emperor Wanli casually instructed Chen Ju, and then said to the eunuchs, "There are several more memorials impeaching Lin Tailai, send them to the court for discussion."

According to the principles of imperial strategy, the monarch should appropriately reprimand the ministers who lead the army outside, but Emperor Wanli was afraid that Lin Tailai, who was very useful, would become disloyal.

So after some thought, it was decided to send the impeachment memorial against Lin Tailai to the court for discussion, and then use the court officials' mouths to criticize him.

In this way, even if Lin Tailai felt resentful, he would only be resentful of those court officials who attacked him.

Two days later, a large number of court officials gathered in the East Court Room outside the Meridian Gate. The range of participants in the court meeting was much larger than that of the court recommendation, and the number of people was twice as many.

However, this time, the court meeting was not chaired by Wang Tianguan, which made many people feel uncomfortable. This was the first time in the past two years.

According to the rules, when the Minister of Personnel was absent, the court discussions and recommendations would be presided over by the Minister of Revenue, who was ranked second among the six ministries.

The Grand Tutor Yu Shenxing, who was not even fifty years old, stood in the host seat, feeling a mixture of emotion.

If there is a chance, he also wants to be the Minister of Personnel. As the Minister of Revenue, his priority is still very high.

But unfortunately, as the first person in the outer court, the Minister of Personnel attached great importance to seniority, and his qualifications were really lacking.

If I were ten to twenty years older, I would have a great chance of becoming the Minister of Personnel this time.

Seeing that most of the participants had arrived, Yu Dasitu said, "Quiet!"

So everyone in the Dongchao room stopped chatting temporarily and waited for Minister Yu to make his opening remarks.

Suddenly, there was a sound of wailing from outside the door. Yu Shangshu shouted in dissatisfaction, "Who's outside?"

Someone opened the window, and people nearby looked out, only to see someone wearing a rather peculiar blue-black official uniform, lying on the ground and crying facing the Meridian Gate.

Even if they couldn't see his face, everyone knew who he was. The only person in the capital wearing a blue-black official uniform was the Korean envoy Yin Zhuoran.

Someone who was curious shouted, "Yin Zhengshi, why are you crying again!"

Without even turning his head, Yin Zhuoran cried out, "First, I'm crying because the palace of our great ancestor was burned down and the ancestral temple no longer exists! Second, I'm crying because the important cities in the north of our country have been devastated!"

Everyone in the Dongchao room: "."

The phrase "all lives lost" is so damn accurate when used here. This Korean envoy is also a talented person.

In less than a month, Lin Jinglue conquered Pyongyang and Hamhung, two important cities in the north of Korea. The item with the largest number of enemies killed in the battle report was "burned to death."

Although the cities are all Joseon cities and the houses are all Joseon people's houses, isn't it a bit too reckless to set fire like this?
Wherever they attack, they burn it. If this isn't "huge suffering for all", what else can it be?
No one has ever thought that "all lives are lost" could be not only an exaggeration to describe a miserable situation, but also an objective description of a certain fact.

A group of ministers from the Celestial Empire were speechless when faced with the accusation of "lively suffering" by the ministers of the vassal states.

Minister Yu ignored Yin Zhuoran and turned to ask everyone, "Who brought Envoy Yin Zheng here? Aren't you afraid that Lin Jiuyuan will misunderstand?"

Many people are also very curious, who is so brave?
Bringing the Korean envoys to the Meridian Gate to cry, aren't you afraid of Lin Tailai's revenge after he returns to the court?

The senior censor Qian Yiben, who was at the quasi-great perfection realm, stood up with his head held high and confessed, "It was me!"

He then explained: “I saw Envoy Yin Zheng crying outside the right gate of Chang’an and his plight was truly pitiful, so I brought him here.

After all, today's court discussion also involves Lin Tailai, who sent troops to Korea. It is reasonable to let the Korean envoys listen in, right? "When everyone heard this, they couldn't help but wonder, isn't the highlight of today's discussion about the Minister of Personnel? Why did they start with Lin Tailai, who is two or three thousand miles away?

Should we start with Lin Tailai when writing articles for the Minister of Personnel?
To be honest, this level of influence on government affairs made everyone present feel envious.

Yu Shangshu, who was presiding over the court discussion, asked conscientiously, "Censor Qian, what do you think is wrong with Lin Jiuyuan?"

Qian Yiben said passionately: "At the beginning of the month, I impeached Lin Jiuyuan for five major crimes! The court took it lightly and did not deal with it seriously.

This led to Lin Tailai becoming even more outrageous and committing three more atrocities!

First, deliberately watching the palace of Taizu of Joseon being burned down was against the rites and moral principles! There were even rumors from the front line that Lin Jiuyuan stopped the firefighting at the scene!
The Second Sage said, "Respect the old as my own, and respect the old of others as well as the young; respect the young as my own, and respect the young of others as well." Therefore, when facing the ancestral temples of vassal states, one should also be respectful. This is the basic etiquette for a minister representing the Ming Dynasty in a foreign country!

How can we allow it to burn and let foreign nations think that our Ming Dynasty is ignorant of education and etiquette?
Second, wherever Lin Jiuyuan went, the city was burned down. Pyongyang and Hamhung were two important cities in the north of Korea, but now they have all been reduced to scorched earth!

Not to mention the sufferings of the Korean people, it also really damages the image of the benevolence and righteousness of the Ming Dynasty and ruins the reputation of the Ming Dynasty abroad!"

The ministers listened and commented in their hearts. It must be said that the angle that Censor Qian took this time was quite tricky.

Instead of arguing too much about North Korea's feelings, all of Lin Tailai's faults were raised to the level of "national image."

In addition, Qian Yiben is really a brave warrior who is not afraid of death! Hai Rui was just like this when he carried his coffin and died for his admonition!
Everyone knows that the number one "Lin fan" in the court is Zhou Yingqiu, the editor of the Hanlin Academy; then correspondingly, the number one "Lin black" is Qian Yiben.

Just based on Qian Yiben's performance in criticizing Lin Tailai in various ways in the past two years, he deserves such an honor.

At this time, Qian Yiben continued to list the facts: "Third, Lin Jiuyuan's military discipline was corrupt, he allowed his soldiers to plunder the people, and demolished 199 houses of Korean people along the way!
It also damages the dignity of our country and seriously damages the reputation of our Celestial Empire!"

All the ministers: "."

The number one hundred and ninety-nine is really spiritual. Why does it sound like it has a strong Lin style?

Qian Yiben is not only courageous and brave, but also an excellent intelligence worker, and he was able to obtain such precise figures.

Finally, Qian Yiben said loudly: "If what I said is wrong, feel free to refute it!"

When everyone in the Dongchao room heard this, they all looked at one person.

Ye Mengxiong, the Grand Marshal of the Ministry of War, was listening to other people's nonsense calmly, but suddenly he found that everyone was looking at him!
As a "newcomer" who had only been in the court for a year, Ye Mengxiong rarely spoke publicly at various court meetings unless they involved military affairs.

On the whole, we keep a low profile and follow the principles of not standing out, not carrying the flag, and not seeking hegemony.

But now, I was caught off guard and became the focus of everyone's attention.

Ye Mengxiong almost didn't react for a moment, and then he realized that he had become the "leader"! Usually, it was Wang Tianguan who charged in the front, and he only needed to follow behind and cheer.

It is generally recognized that the Lin Party today has three pillars: the Prime Minister, the Heavenly Official, and the Grand Marshal.

The Prime Minister did not participate in the court meetings of the outer court, and the Heavenly Official was not present, so the Grand Marshal Ye Mengxiong became the most "famous" member of the Lin Party present.

Now Qian Yiben, a leader of the Qingliu faction, has threatened to attack Lin Tailai directly, so others think that it will be Ye Mengxiong's turn to fight back in the next round.

Moreover, Lin Tailai's actions in Korea were also under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of War at the court level.

Thinking of this, Ye Dasima smiled bitterly. In the eyes of others, he was the biggest member of the Lin Party at the scene.

But he himself knew very well that within the Renewal Society, his main task was to cooperate and he did not have the prestige to command the support of everyone.

But the organization did not tell him about the contingency plan in advance. What should he do now?

At this time, Qian Yiben also went directly to Ye Da Sima and asked, "In the Kingdom of Korea, the affairs of the war are under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of War. What do you think of Lin Jiuyuan's atrocities?"

It is difficult to justify Lin Tailai's "crimes" logically, so Ye Mengxiong could only say vaguely:
"The Ministry of War is only responsible for coordinating food and fodder, collecting intelligence, recording military achievements, and the success or failure of battles. It does not comment on moral issues."

Qian Yiben said aggressively: "Don't bother the Grand Marshal to give a direct evaluation of Lin Jiuyuan! Just tell me what I just said about Lin Jiuyuan. What do you think of it?"

In terms of eloquence, Ye Mengxiong was indeed no match for a professional like Qian Yushi, and was once again left speechless by the questioning.

Some things are of the nature of "can be done but not said", and most of Lin Tailai's so-called "atrocities" fall into this category.

Censor Qian could condemn the atrocities without restraint, but no matter what Ye Mengxiong did, he could not publicly say that burning the city and looting were correct.

Seeing Ye Dasima's hesitant and embarrassed state, the Qingliu Party members laughed softly.

This is a very good start, and a well-started life is half the battle. This one is probably a sure win!

By suppressing Lin Tailai's party on the issue of his atrocities and forcing them to compromise and give in, we can gain a huge advantage in the battle for the position of Minister of Personnel!

Ye Mengxiong was squeezed to the point of being intolerable, and suddenly said: "Oh, yes! What Censor Qian said is right!

Lin Jiuyuan had five major crimes before and three major atrocities after. He was actually more ferocious than the Japanese pirates!"

Qian Yiben was completely confused. How could Ye Dasima say such words? Was he crazy?
The Qingliu Party members also looked at each other in bewilderment. They would rather see Ye Dasima making all kinds of excuses rather than saying such weird words.

Then Ye Mengxiong continued to say viciously: "Since you think that Lin Jiuyuan's crime is serious, then he should be punished severely!

Then please come up with a punishment charter. Should he be dismissed from his post or imprisoned? You officials, please tell me. I have no objection!"

The entire Dongchao Room fell silent in an instant, and the Qingliu Party members were all stunned. This scene didn't seem right.

If you think about it carefully, Lin Jinglüe is now making great progress and winning victory after victory. How could he be recalled, dismissed or imprisoned for a few atrocities?
Ye Da Sima pointed at Qian Yiben and said, "You tell me, Censor Qian, how can we punish Lin Jiuyuan, who has committed so many atrocities, severely?"

Censor Qian: “.”

What happened to you, Ye Da Sima? Why did you flip the table?
Are they going to force Qian Yiben to say something like, "I just need the imperial court to give me a warning"? Then where would Qian Yiben's face be if he was so high-profile?
Qian Yiben is a distinguished VIP player. Can't you, the Lin Party, just cooperate with him in acting?
Logically speaking, you Lin Party members should desperately defend Lin Jiuyuan under Qian Yiben's attack! Instead of just giving up like this!
(End of this chapter)