Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 914: Holding Chess
Qianqing Palace.

Crown Prince Zhu Minlan was sitting next to Zhu Shenzhui, and the father and son were talking.

Although a teaching hall was set up in the palace with Sun Chengzong as the chief tutor, Zhu Shenzui was still very concerned about the studies of the Crown Prince and Prince Song. He would go to the teaching hall in person from time to time to check on their homework, and would also call them to the Qianqing Palace on weekdays to inquire about their learning progress.

However, compared to Song Wang Zhu Mincheng, Zhu Shenzhu paid more attention to Crown Prince Zhu Minlan. After all, he was the crown prince and the future heir to the empire, which was always different. And while examining their academic performance, Zhu Shenzhu had different preferences for the two. For example, Song Wang Zhu Mincheng only wanted his academic performance to be fine and he would follow the routine, while Zhu Shenzhu did not have too high requirements for the rest of Zhu Minlan, and paid more attention to his character and temperament. In other words, as long as his academic performance met the requirements, the key was that he must not grow up crooked. He did not have too many requirements for other things, and it was okay to have some personal hobbies, after all, learning should be a combination of work and rest.

But it was different for Crown Prince Zhu Minlan. He was the heir to the throne, so in addition to the above-mentioned studies, Zhu Shenzui would often give him special lessons and teach him some political experience in private.

Although Sun Chengzong was good at education and had been an imperial tutor, his teaching ability was quite good. However, as a minister, it was impossible for Sun Chengzong to understand the true thoughts of the king. These could not be taught by ordinary people. Only by teaching by words and deeds could they work, just like Zhu Shenzhu was now teaching the prince in his own way, allowing him to gradually come into contact with and understand, which would allow the prince to grow up as soon as possible.

"Dad, why do you want to let the Donglin Party go? Isn't this a great opportunity to eradicate Donglin? Even if it's because of Master Sun, sparing a few of them is already a great favor from the emperor. Why let it go so easily?" The matter of the Donglin Party has now become a hot topic. With Zhu Shenzui's definition of the matter in the court, the cabinet, the three judicial departments, the Jinyiwei, the police department, Sun Chengzong and other important officials have begun the final procedures for the case. If nothing unexpected happens, none of the officials involved in the case will end up well. Some of the main people involved in the case may lose their lives, and others will probably be dismissed from office, have their property confiscated, or be exiled.

Listening to the prince's question, Zhu Shenzhui smiled and asked back: "This time, we let the Donglin Party off without uprooting them. So let me ask you, what would happen if we didn't do this, and what would be the result of doing this now? Have you considered these?"

Zhu Minlan was slightly stunned. This was something he had not thought of. He just felt that this time the Donglin Party was too easy. According to his original idea, wouldn't it be better to use this case to uproot the Donglin Party and completely eradicate it? The Donglin Party has been stirring up party disputes in the court for decades. From the late Wanli period to the Chongzhen period, the root cause of many problems in the Ming Dynasty came from the Donglin Party. Moreover, although Sun Chengzong was his teacher and a member of the Donglin Party, Sun Chengzong had a different attitude towards the Donglin Party. Not only did he not get close to them, but he was quite critical of them. He looked down on those party members who only knew how to talk big.

In private, Zhu Shenzui often discussed with Zhu Minlan the harm of party struggles to the country. As the crown prince, Zhu Minlan also agreed with this. Because of this, when the case was made public, Zhu Minlan believed that this opportunity should be taken to completely eliminate the Donglin Party. Once the Donglin Party was gone, there would not be so many problems in the future.

But now Zhu Shenzhui asked him this question in return, which made Zhu Minlan slightly stunned. What he had previously focused on was only the harm that the Donglin Party had caused to the country, including his intolerance of the actions of these people, but he had not thought deeply about what Zhu Shenzhui talked about.

Zhu Minlan was concentrating on thinking and did not speak for a while. Seeing his frowning expression in thought, Zhu Shenzhui did not urge him. He picked up the tea in front of him and drank it slowly, quietly waiting for his son's answer.

It was unknown how long it took before Zhu Minlan came back to his senses from his thoughts and looked up at Zhu Shenzhui.

"What? Have you figured it out?"

"The child seems to understand a little."

"Then tell me, what exactly do you understand?" Zhu Shenzhui asked directly.

Zhu Minlan began to speak, and he told Zhu Shenzui that he had thought of some issues. Zhu Shenzui had just raised two points. One was to take this opportunity to completely resolve the consequences of the Donglin Party, and the other was the reason for doing so now.

After careful consideration, Zhu Minlan seemed to understand Zhu Shencui's purpose. He felt that Zhu Shencui did not want to completely solve the problem of the Donglin Party, but was worried about the chain reaction caused by the complete collapse of the Donglin Party, and even some unpredictable and uncontrollable changes.

As a huge political group with deep backgrounds in the Ming officialdom and local gentry, the Donglin Party had enormous power. It was deeply rooted not only in the central government but also in the local areas. Once such a political group was uprooted, it would inevitably lead to great political turmoil, including local instability.

Although the situation in the Ming Dynasty is much better than when Chongzhen was in power, the vitality of the Ming Dynasty has not been completely restored. In addition, the area where the Donglin Party has the greatest influence is in the south. The south is not only the richest area in the Ming Dynasty, but also the area that the central government has not been able to absolutely control in recent years. If the Donglin Party collapses completely at this time, the southern officials, including most gentry and merchants, will protect themselves. No one can guarantee what consequences will occur. Therefore, it is not practical to get rid of the Donglin Party all at once in this situation. This is not a good thing for the country. In a word, it is necessary to solve the problem and maintain stability. What is more important is the attitude of other parties in it. As the saying goes, when the wall falls, everyone pushes it. If the Donglin Party collapses completely, then with the political power vacuum and a large amount of benefits generated after the collapse of the Donglin Party, it is bound to lead to a situation of dividing the "cake". With the emergence of this phenomenon, all parts of the Ming Dynasty, including the central government, will inevitably be in a state of chaos.

Zhu Shenzhu absolutely did not want to see this result. What Zhu Shenzhu wanted was to suppress the Donglin Party. Now was not a good time to completely solve the Donglin Party. Moreover, the Donglin Party was deeply rooted in the South. If other parties intervened, Zhu Shenzhu's attempt to take the opportunity to solve the problem in the South would become a problem instead.

Interests move people's hearts! Zhu Shenzhui was extremely cautious about these situations, and he didn't want the ripe fruit to fall into the hands of others. As one party gained strength while the other lost strength, the strength of other parties would inevitably increase greatly, which was an undesirable result.

Although Zhu Shenzhui has taken action against the Donglin Party, his reasons are all reasonable, and all subsequent actions are carried out on the basis of law. In addition, Zhu Shenzhui asked Sun Chengzong, Qian Qianyi and other Donglin Party members to intervene in the case in advance, which was also a deliberate attempt to preserve some of the Donglin Party's vitality. As long as the Donglin Party suffered a heavy blow in this case but did not collapse completely, these Donglin Party members could still barely maintain the situation. At this time, the Donglin Party could only rely on the protection of the imperial power to protect itself. In this way, the Donglin Party was equivalent to bowing to the imperial power, and Zhu Shenzhui, as the emperor, could easily achieve his political goals through the Donglin Party.

As an emperor, one cannot govern the country and deal with problems based on personal preferences. Politics is not just about fighting and killing. Politics requires compromise and balance.

It is true that the Donglin Party has various problems, but it is not completely useless. If the Donglin Party were gone, the balance of the court would be completely broken. The best way is to keep some of the Donglin Party around, win it over for one's own use, and use it to contain other parties.

Hearing Zhu Minlan's answer, Zhu Shenzhui showed a gratified smile on his face. His son was very smart. He quickly understood after a few suggestions. At least he saw the benefits of keeping the Donglin Party rather than completely getting rid of it.

Although Zhu Minlan's understanding was only partial, it was enough for him now. It was inevitable that young people did not consider issues so comprehensively and deeply. It was not easy to figure these things out.

"You only said one aspect. There is indeed such a reason." Zhu Shenzhu nodded and said, "The world is a chessboard. The emperor should be the chess player, not the chess pieces on the board. From the moment the emperor takes this position, he is playing a game with the world, and all the civil and military officials, including the people of the world, are chess pieces on the chessboard. All chess pieces have a role. Where to place a chess piece, what purpose to achieve, or whether to use it as a robbery, abandon it for defense or attack, all depends on the emperor's thoughts."

"So, as an emperor, you should step out of being a single chess piece and start with the overall situation, controlling the rhythm and balance. This is the true way of an emperor. You are the crown prince, not an ordinary prince. Now I am holding the chess piece, and this role will be played by you in the future. You will not succeed if you do not understand the layout. You must remember it."

"I am grateful for your advice." Zhu Minlan bowed solemnly to his father with admiration on his face.

Zhu Shenzhui continued, "Most of what you said just now is correct. The Donglin Party can be suppressed, but it cannot be completely destroyed now. Because once the Donglin Party collapses, other parties will inevitably compete for the "wealth" left by the Donglin Party. This wealth is not ordinary gold and silver, but political heritage, including official positions at all levels, mutual influence and control over local areas, and of course other things."

"After this case, the Donglin Party must have been severely damaged. Although Sun Chengzong, Qian Qianyi and others intervened in this case in advance and saved most of the Donglin Party, do you think anyone in the Donglin Party will really be grateful to them after this case?"

"Are you saying that some people are not only not grateful to Master Sun, but will instead bear a grudge against Master Sun and his party? They think that it was they who betrayed the Donglin Party that led to this result?" Zhu Minlan asked thoughtfully.

Zhu Shenzhui smiled and nodded, "This is natural. Everyone has their own thoughts. Everyone has different ideas. Sun Chengzong and Qian Qianyi did this for the Donglin Party, but no matter what, the case was finally uncovered in their hands, which led to the current result. As a result, the Donglin Party suffered heavy losses, and many people will definitely regard them as Donglin traitors. What will be the result of this?"

"Disintegration and internal division?" Zhu Minlan blurted out.

"Yes!" Zhu Shenzhui said with relief, "This result is inevitable. The Donglin Party has suffered such a loss and is internally divided. They will no longer be as united as before. Once they start fighting, they will definitely try every possible means. At this time, how the chess player places the pieces is very important. If the pieces are placed well, the whole board will survive. Isn't it a brilliant move?"

(End of this chapter)