King Xiang of the Red Chamber

Chapter 749: Spring of the Eighteenth Year of Zhengtong
Zhu Jinghong arrived in front of the army with a group of generals and first stood in the first square on the east and west sides.

This is the newly trained First Guard, and the temporary commander Zhu Jinghong recognizes him.

"Li...Sungyong, right?"

"I, Li Chengyong, the Right Lieutenant General of the Yaowu Central Guard, pay my respects to Your Highness!"

Li Chengyong stood at the head of the square formation, with several captains behind him.

After winning the battle in Tianshan last year, this man brought a stall of wine during the inspection, which left a deep impression on Zhu Jinghong.

At that time, Li Chengyong was the captain of a thousand-man detachment. At the beginning of the year, he had been promoted to the rank of lieutenant general of the Beijing camp. After the new training began, he was temporarily transferred here to serve as the commander of the new soldiers' guards.

After signaling Li Chengyong to stand up, Zhu Jinghong asked with a smile: "Didn't you bring any wine today?"

Li Chengyong bent his waist slightly and replied: "Your Highness, I was frivolous and reckless in the past. Thinking back on it... I still feel ashamed!"

Zhu Jinghong calmly replied: "Heroes are brave and daring...what is there to be ashamed of!"

"Just be careful about the occasion. I hope all the generals will always keep a pure heart. This way, they can better serve the court and relieve His Majesty's worries!"

Having been in a high position for a long time, Zhu Jinghong always speaks in the tone of an old cadre in such formal occasions.

It has been seven years since he traveled through time. He is only twenty-three years old this year, but he has changed inside and out.

"Your Highness, I will keep your teachings in mind!" Li Chengyong kowtowed again.

The generals around him also echoed his words.

Afterwards, Zhu Jinghong, along with a group of generals, slowly passed in front of the army formation.

"I wish your highness a long and healthy life!"

"I wish your highness a long and healthy life!"

"I wish your highness a long and healthy life!"

The shouts from the scene reached the sky, and all the soldiers participating in the training shouted at the top of their voices.

Zhu Jinghong had multiple identities, but he was no different from a god in the army. The soldiers had great respect for him, so when Zhu Jinghong passed by, their voices would get louder.
There was no way around it. All the major battles in the past six or seven years and the series of victories achieved by the Ming Dynasty were facilitated by him, the King Xiang. His prestige was second only to the emperor.

The review had just been completed and Zhu Jinghong had planned to have lunch with his generals in the military camp, but an eunuch came to tell him that there had been a major change in the court and Prime Minister Zhao Yushan asked him to go back quickly.

In order to avoid suspicion, Zhu Jinghong seldom contacted civil officials, and had almost no dealings with officials of the six ministries and above, let alone the Prime Minister Zhao Yushan.

Of course, Zhao Yushan never had any private dealings with him, and the two of them had a tacit understanding in this regard.

Now that Zhao Yushan had sent him a message directly, it was obvious that the situation was extremely urgent. So Zhu Jinghong did not care about anything else, bid farewell to his generals and rushed to the imperial city.

After careful questioning on the way, he finally found out what was going on. It turned out that the emperor wanted to kill the second assistant Chen Jinyun.

The reason is actually very simple. The series of changes that have occurred inside and outside the court recently were all driven by Chen Jinyun and his followers.

But this is not entirely correct. It should be said that those who opposed the court's new policies took the initiative to gather under Chen Jinyun.

Even Zheng Zhiqing, who has always been low-key, made a tactful statement recently, implicitly criticizing the current court for being too oppressive and allowing treacherous and corrupt officials to wreak havoc on justice.

In the morning, the emperor convened a court meeting to discuss how to control the situation, or to put it bluntly, to prevent officials from retiring.

Although it is called a discussion, in fact, everyone is a smart person and knows that it is just an exchange of interests.

At the end of the court discussion, the emperor was furious and wanted to execute the second assistant minister, which showed that the discussion had failed.

This also made Zhu Jinghong realize that everything that had happened since the Mid-Autumn Festival had pushed the literati into a "dead end."

That is why the current situation has arisen, where even superficial harmony cannot be maintained in court discussions.

When Zhu Jinghong entered the imperial city, eunuchs came to report to him that the second assistant Chen Jinyun had been taken to Zhaoyu.

That was not all. The Minister of Rites Yang Jintang and the Minister of Punishments Shen Guozhen were both fined and ordered to reflect on their mistakes behind closed doors.

Upon hearing the news, Zhu Jinghong was also shocked. He thought to himself that the old man was so angry that he overturned the table.

Zhu Jinghong admitted that the old man had the capital to turn the table over. After all, the imperial power now had an overwhelming advantage, and anyone who defected could be destroyed.

But if it really comes to that, it will be a huge loss for the court, and it will be a lose-lose situation in the end.

Although the letter was delivered by Zhao Yushan, Zhu Jinghong did not go to find him, but went directly to the Qianqing Palace.

Contrary to his expectations, the Qianqing Palace was very quiet and he did not see the furious emperor.

After reporting, Zhu Jinghong was able to enter the inner hall and finally stood in front of the emperor's desk.

After he saluted, before Zhu Jinghong could speak, Zhu Xianming asked, "How is the training going in Shanglinyuan?"

"Morale is high. After we assign people to different places, we can go straight into battle!"

"At the beginning of next year, the Beijing troops deployed in the nine borders will be rotated, and the troops left behind in the northwest will also be rotated. You will take care of this matter and come up with a set of rules as soon as possible!"

When he said this, Zhu Xianming actually coughed a few times. His health has not been very good recently.

Looking carefully at the emperor in front of him, Zhu Jinghong's thoughts went back to seven years ago. At that time, the old man was full of energy, not like the decadent aura he exudes now.

"Yes!"

Putting down the imperial brush in his hand, Zhu Xianming opened the memorial in front of him and asked, "What do you want to do?"

"My son heard that you put Chen Jinyun in jail!"

"What...are you here to plead for mercy?" Zhu Xianming didn't care.

Seeing the old man's calm face and composed appearance, Zhu Jinghong could confirm that he had no intention of getting angry.

Since it was not an impulse, it must have been intentional. This situation also surprised him.

"Dad, Chen Jinyun is the second assistant minister, and his students and friends are all over the world. If he is sentenced to death, I'm afraid..."

Before Zhu Jinghong finished speaking, Zhu Xianming waved his hand, indicating that he didn't need to continue.

"You said that regarding the land reclamation, would all the scholars in the world risk rebellion and death and fight against the imperial court to the end?"

"It's just a survey. We're not trying to take their land away, but to make them pay their taxes. If we don't touch their lifeblood, they won't all fight to the death!"

"Since Zhao Yushan took office, the land survey has encountered many setbacks and has been very difficult to implement. What is the reason?"

Seeing Zhu Jinghong's thoughtful expression, Zhu Xianming pointed to the table and said calmly: "It is right here in the Qianqing Palace. It's because I... didn't push it with all my strength!"

"Since this time the situation has gotten out of hand, I might as well turn it upside down. As the saying goes, there is no construction without destruction... I have already decided that whoever rebels will be killed!"

Zhu Jinghong understood the emperor's words, but he still didn't quite agree, but he didn't oppose it either. This was a big deal, and to completely suppress the chaos in various places, the army had to be used next.

"Dad, this matter is serious...you have to think twice!"

Zhu Jinghong was obviously more aggressive, but he was able to keep his composure in such a big matter, which made Zhu Xianming very satisfied.

With a smile on his face, Zhu Xianming said, "Don't worry, Dad is 70% sure... As long as we chop off a few more heads in the early stage, the others will be obedient!"

This is a complete gamble. If this fails and messes up the world, what will happen in the future...

Thinking of this, Zhu Jinghong changed his mind and felt that if he could expand the tax base in this way, the results would be extraordinarily fruitful.

He has many plans, and to complete them he needs money, and the sooner they are implemented the better, after all, there is not much time left for the Ming Dynasty.

The reason why the southwest was unstable was because Britain, France, Spain and Portugal were causing trouble. Zhu Jinghong did not know when these four countries would attack.

Therefore, it is a very correct approach to resolve domestic problems as soon as possible and then mobilize all resources to expand living space externally.

Zhu Jinghong was thinking, but from what Zhu Xianming saw, he thought he still wanted to persuade him.

So Zhu Xianming said: "Dad is old now, and has been cursed a lot over the years. Now he is not afraid of being cursed anymore!"

"This matter will offend scholars all over the world, and it is inevitable that I will be cursed by the world. Now I might as well do it and bear all the curses, so that future generations will not be embarrassed!"

These are all from his heart. As for who the "descendants" he mentioned are, the answer is actually self-evident.

To be honest, Zhu Jinghong felt a little touched, after all, the old man was thinking about him.

"Dad, since you have made up your mind, I will not say any more, but this matter must be carefully planned to ensure that nothing goes wrong!"

"Of course. I have ordered the Northern Pacification Office to send orders to all local Qianhu Offices to conduct a strict investigation of all outgoing officials. Anyone who has committed a crime will be arrested and sent to Zhaoyu for interrogation!"

The purpose of launching an investigation into recently retired officials is to force the incumbent officials to stay in office. After all, everyone has a past of "living in harmony with the world".

"And I have already instructed the governors of all regions to prepare for war with all their strength to deal with the changes. If there is any rebellion, suppress it immediately!"

Zhu Xianming then went on to talk about some arrangements. During the process, the father and son had a discussion and it took more than an hour to come up with a more complete plan.

"Dad, if you can accomplish this great thing again, your name will be remembered for eternity!"

The word "again" is very clever, affirming the emperor's previous series of achievements.

Suppressing the Japanese pirates, pacifying Korea, sweeping across the northwest, defeating the Western barbarians... Although this series of major events was led by Zhu Jinghong, they were also the result of the civil and military achievements of Emperor Zhu Xianming.

"Boy, I'm not dead yet...what do you mean by being famous through the ages!" Zhu Xianming said unhappily.

Both the father and the son were laughing at this moment. They got along very well with each other now. It was obvious that their previous worries about not getting along well without a buffer were unnecessary.

"By the way, there is another imperial edict here, take a look!" Zhu Xianming pointed to the left side of the desk.

At that time, he and his son were the only ones in the room, so Zhu Jinghong had to go forward and pick it up himself.

When he opened it, he was also surprised by the content. It was an imperial decree for promotion.

"Zheng Xianlin was promoted to Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, He Gujin was promoted to Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, and Jia Yucun was promoted to Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice!"

After reading it softly, Zhu Jinghong closed the imperial edict in his hand and asked slowly, "Father, if they are all promoted, who will keep an eye on them locally?"

"There are many people who are dissatisfied with the government's policies, and there are also many who are willing to serve the government. The three of them have made a lot of contributions in the past few years, and it's time to give them more responsibilities!"

"After all, we can't rely on Lord Zhao alone in this world, don't you think?"

The emperor's last sentence has an interesting meaning, and Zhu Jinghong is now pondering it carefully.

The three people promoted today were the earliest officials to be attached to Zhu Jinghong. Promoting these people at this moment was obviously the emperor paving the way for him.

Chen Jinyun is doomed, and it is only a matter of time before Zheng Zhiqing loses power. There is a risk that Zhao Yushan will dominate the government in the future. Zhu Xianming is preparing for a rainy day.

Alas, my parents, who worked so hard to give birth to me... At this moment, Zhu Jinghong had a new understanding of this sentence, which made him feel very lucky.

But is this really just luck? Thinking carefully, Zhu Jinghong felt that it was not. After all, he could become the final winner only because of his unremitting efforts in the early stage.

"It's up to you, Dad!"

"Go back, don't interfere in these matters, just take care of your own business in the future!" After saying this, Zhu Xianming coughed a few more times.

"Yes!"

Then the two of them chatted briefly, and then Zhu Jinghong said goodbye and left.

Ten days passed in the blink of an eye, and the results of the investigation by the Northern Pacification Office came out. Various evidences showed that Chen Jinyun was corrupt, abused his power, took human lives lightly, formed a clique for personal gain, and disrupted the government...

Each of the charges was extremely serious, and the emperor eventually issued an edict ordering Chen Jinyun to commit suicide in prison and confiscating his property.

This result really shocked many people. As the saying goes, no official should be punished, let alone a person like the second assistant minister of the cabinet.

Of course, while some people were frightened, some planned to continue to resist, and some officials chose to confront.

Things were going as the emperor had expected. The Jinyiwei in various places were also taking action. Officials were arrested and their properties were confiscated one after another. These people were not treated preferentially. The offenders were all sentenced to death.

In just three months, a total of 138 officials from the ministries to the prefectures and counties were beheaded, and their property was confiscated, worth nearly 7 million taels of silver.

The emperor was generous and gave these treasures to the Jinyiwei and local governors, encouraging them to continue suppressing the chaos.

The reason why the Dusi was rewarded was that there were rebellions in Jiangnan, Hebei, Shandong and Hunan, and the Dusi in various places sent troops to suppress them in time, so it was right for them to be rewarded.

As for whether rewarding the Jinyiwei would make these people even crazier, to the point of confusing right and wrong and arbitrarily persecuting others, this was not important to the emperor. After all, going too far was inevitable.

It’s no wonder that Zhu Xianming had predicted the situation correctly, and the subsequent opposition from both the government and the public was indeed smaller.

In March of the 18th year of the Zhengtong reign, Zheng Zhiqing, the Grand Secretary of the Wenyuan Pavilion, submitted a memorial stating that the court's new policies would benefit the country and the people, and hoped that the emperor would give priority to their implementation in his hometown.

Zheng Zhiqing's memorial was a sign of the times, foreshadowing the defeat of those who opposed the policy in both the government and the public, and acknowledging the correctness of the court's policy of land surveying.

It was also because of this congratulatory letter that the long-vacant position of Second Prime Minister had a occupant. On the ninth day of March, the emperor issued an edict to grant Zheng Zhiqing the title of Grand Secretary of Wuying Palace and the title of Grand Tutor to the Crown Prince.

In the political struggle that lasted for nearly half a year, the biggest winner among officials was the newly appointed Second Assistant Minister Zheng Zhiqing.

During this process, a total of 234 officials died, and most of their families were implicated and were either imprisoned, exiled or beheaded.

Of course, many civilians were deceived into rebellion and died under the suppression of government troops, which became an insignificant price.

Although the general trend has been determined, the implementation of land survey across the country is still a very difficult task, which also requires the emperor to pay close attention and work hard to implement it.

(End of this chapter)