Ming Dynasty: My Father Zhang Juzheng

Chapter 112 The Queen Mother is also a woman

The news of the two monks' suicide leaked out somehow, and for a moment, the monks, who had been silent, became agitated again.

The air in Beijing was filled with gunpowder, which somewhat dispelled the chill.

Just after noon that day, the Cabinet Grand Secretary Shen Shi hurriedly arrived at the residence of Grand Secretary Zhang in a warm sedan chair carried by four people.

After getting off the sedan chair, he picked up his official robe and ran straight to Zhang Juzheng's study. In the study, Zhang Juzheng closed his eyes to rest, and when he heard the noise, he slowly opened his eyes.

When the two met, they each bowed and sat down as host and guest.

As soon as he sat down, Shen Shixing stood up as if there was a burning coal on his buttocks. He said: "Prime Minister, this matter is of great importance. According to the information I have received, there are also elderly monks in the prefectures below who committed suicide to resist the imperial court's law."

"That further proves that our Dharma is necessary." Zhang Juzheng frowned and snorted angrily, "These monks are unworthy of claiming to be followers of the Buddha. If they are truly virtuous, would they think of such a despicable method as self-destruction?"

A person who truly believes in Buddhism will never think of committing suicide.

Buddha said that all living beings suffer, so they should constantly practice to prevent all external things from affecting them. However, they committed suicide just because they lost the support from the court.

If the six senses are not pure, one will not enter the Buddha's kingdom after death, but will go to the eighteen levels of hell.

"That's what I said, but the public opinion outside is very unfavorable." Shen Shixing stood up and took two steps towards Zhang Juzheng.

"Oh, tell me about it?" Zhang Juzheng leaned back, looking calm and composed.

"Outside, outside, people say you are mean and ungrateful, and that you forced the monk to death."

"Then what do you mean?"

When Shen Shixing heard the question, he thought for a while before saying, "My idea is that all monks over fifty years old will be exempted from the examination, and those with disabilities will also be exempted from the examination, which is considered to be a way out for them."

"No." Zhang Juzheng suddenly waved his hands, and his tone was cold and unyielding. "If fifty is OK, then forty-nine? How about forty-eight? How about forty-seven?
As for the issue of disability, if the disabled are really exempted from the assessment, then the Ming Dynasty will probably have tens of thousands of monks with missing limbs."

Once the standards are lowered, they will continue to slide down endlessly.

"Then we will conduct an assessment on monks over the age of sixty who are considered unworthy." Shen Shixing hesitated for a long time before speaking with trembling voice.

"It's what it is, no need for any preferential treatment." Zhang Juzheng waved his hand, stood up, walked to the window, and said with his back to Shen Shixing, "Since things have come to this point, there is no turning back. Rumo, you should understand the importance of this."

Looking at Zhang Juzheng's thin back, Shen Shixing was silent for a few seconds, and finally nodded in agreement: "I understand, but the Buddhist sect's riot is a small matter, and some students from the Hanlin Academy have joined in."

"If they want to make trouble, let them do it. The scholars have been rebelling for three years but have failed. They will not achieve anything significant." Zhang Juzheng said domineeringly.

"Okay, please give me another set of rules."

"What charter?"

"What should I do if the monk makes a big fuss?" Shen Shixing asked in a deep voice.

"Just disperse them." Zhang Juzheng turned around and looked into Shen Shixing's eyes and said.

"What if it can't be dispelled?"

"How could that be? Aren't there people from the Imperial Guards and the Five Cities Army and Horses Division helping us?"

Shen Shixing said bitterly, "After someone died, these monks became bolder like leeches seeing blood. I am afraid that if a conflict breaks out, my soldiers will be afraid to act."

"Well, you send soldiers to guard the important roads, and drive back anyone who dares to attack. As long as no lives are lost, everything will be fine." Zhang Juzheng frowned and thought for a moment, then said.

"Yes." Shen Shixing responded respectfully, but his feet did not move.

"Do you have anything else to do?"

"Please give me a written order, otherwise the soldiers below will not dare to take action based on just a plain word."

Shen Shixing was a slippery person like a loach. This time he was simply forced into a task. In order to protect himself, he naturally had to arrange everything properly.

Zhang Juzheng waited for Shen Shixing with a stern face for a long time before he burst out laughing: "Good for you, Shen Shixing, you want to push all the responsibility onto me. Fine, fine, I don't have to worry about too many debts, I will write a charter for you."

Zhang Juzheng made a joke about Shen Shixing and was about to write when You Qi suddenly rushed into the study from outside in a hurry.

"What's the matter?" Zhang Juzheng asked unhappily.

"Master, master, something terrible has happened. The monks of Zhaoning Temple have been fighting with the soldiers on guard. Five soldiers and three monks have died, and more than a dozen have been injured." After taking two deep breaths, You Qi finished speaking very quickly.

hiss.
Zhang Juzheng and Shen Shixing looked at each other and felt that the situation was serious.

After a long silence, Zhang Juzheng pointed at Shen Shixing and ordered, "Rumo, you go to the scene now to maintain order and comfort the injured and dead. Let's go to the palace to meet the Queen Mother, so that no one can take advantage of the opportunity to stir up trouble."

"Okay." Shen Shixing nodded in agreement, and then he and Zhang Juzheng went their separate ways.

The two of them quickly left the Grand Secretary's residence. At this time, snowflakes as big as goose feathers began to float in the sky.

It fell on the top of the sedan chair, making a rustling sound. Zhang Juzheng in the sedan chair frowned and concentrated, not knowing what he was thinking about.

But he didn't seem panicked at all.

The current situation is much better than that in the early years of the Wanli period.

Although he was the Prime Minister at that time, most of his followers in the court were followers of the former Prime Minister Gao Gong, so his title of Prime Minister became a mere formality.

It took him a lot of effort to eliminate Gao Gong's followers, and after more than ten years of hard work, he had the entire court under his control. At least on the surface, that was the case.

The key issue now is that Empress Dowager Li will not make any trouble. As long as he appeases her, he will remain as steady as a rock no matter how chaotic the outside world is.

Just as he was thinking about it, the warm sedan chair had arrived in front of the Forbidden City.

Zhang Juzheng got off the sedan chair, walked along the palace wall for a distance, and arrived at the gate of the Cining Palace.

He patted the snow off his body and stood outside respectfully. After a while, a palace maid in uniform came out and said with a smile, "Mr. Zhang, the Queen Mother wants you in."

"Yes." Zhang Juzheng tilted his head and ran inside.

Walking around the shining screen wall, Zhang Juzheng came to the reception room.

Empress Dowager Li had been waiting here for a long time.

She was wearing a bright yellow long dress with a hanging tail and a pattern of birds paying homage to the phoenix. Her long hair was piled up behind her head with two amber ruyi hairpins inserted in it. Her fair, oval face was lightly made up, and she was already indescribably beautiful.

"Your Majesty, Zhang Juzheng greets the Empress Dowager." Not daring to look any longer, Zhang Juzheng quickly lowered his head and saluted towards the Empress Dowager Li.

Empress Dowager Li blushed and asked the palace maid to find a seat for Zhang Juzheng. After the two of them sat down, Zhang Juzheng suddenly realized that the empress dowager, who usually sat upright, had become more charming.

"Mr. Zhang, is Yu'er okay?"

Empress Dowager Li smiled and covered her lips, then asked a question with a smile.

Zhang Juzheng didn't know why the empress dowager asked about this, but when the question came to his lips, he could only bite the bullet and answer: "Miss Yu'er follows the empress dowager, and she is dignified and elegant."

Hearing this, a trace of disappointment flashed across Empress Dowager Li's eyes, which was gone in a flash.

As soon as he opened his mouth, his voice became a little cold: "Mr. Zhang, what's the matter that makes you come to me so anxiously?"

"Oh, it's like this. There was a fight in Zhaoning Temple today, and five soldiers and three monks were killed. This old minister dare not conceal it, so I came here specially to inform the Empress Dowager." Zhang Juzheng replied calmly.

"Ah? How did it turn out like this? Mr. Zhang, I never agreed to let you destroy the lives of these monks." Empress Dowager Li opened her cherry lips in shock.

"Queen, a short pain is worse than a long one. The prosperity of Buddhism has nothing to do with the number of monks, but depends on how many people are sincere in their devotion to Buddhism. Look at these monks, they can't even memorize the simplest Buddhist scriptures, and some even commit suicide."

Zhang Juzheng's throat was smoking as he spoke, so he took a cup of tea to moisten his throat and continued, "These people are not Buddhists at all, but leeches who want to lie behind the court and suck the marrow out of its bones."

"But after all, someone has died. How can we see blood in such a sacred place of Buddhism?"

"Queen Mother, the Buddha said that there is cause and effect. These monks who were just filling in the gaps must have planted bad karma in the past to have ended up like this. If they had sincerely worshipped the Buddha and improved their mind, how could they have encountered such a disaster?"

Empress Dowager Li knew that she was not as good at talking as Zhang Juzheng, so she raised her eyes and asked, "What are you going to do, Mr. Zhang?"

"Detain these monks separately and examine them to prevent them from rioting again." Zhang Juzheng directly said what he was thinking.

"Mr. Zhang, how many people do you plan to keep?"

"Leave one person out of ten."

“That’s too little.”

Empress Dowager Li was somewhat displeased, and her voice unconsciously rose. "I asked you to eliminate the scum in Buddhism, but if you continue to do so, will there still be anyone left in Buddhism in ten years?"

Zhang Juzheng's expression relaxed, and he suppressed his emotions and said, "Empress Dowager, in fact, everyone has a Buddha in their heart. If they sincerely worship Buddha, just like you, why do they need to be in a temple?"

"I think that these Buddhists returning to their villages, farming, doing good deeds and spreading Buddhism, are more in line with the Buddha's words of 'saving all living beings'?"

"Well, you, Grand Secretary Zhang, are very knowledgeable. We can't argue with you." Empress Dowager Li blinked her eyes and smiled playfully, "Let's do as you wish."

"Thank you, Queen Dowager." Zhang Juzheng breathed a sigh of relief. He wiped the sweat from his forehead and stood up to say goodbye.

Empress Dowager Li wanted to invite Zhang Juzheng to have lunch, but Zhang Juzheng said that he had many things to do and could not stay for long. Empress Dowager Li smiled and said, "Mr. Zhang is a busy man, unlike me who is idle. Go quickly."

"Oh, by the way, has Mr. Zhang sent anyone to prepare for the Aoshan Lantern Festival in the first month of this year?"

"I have ordered the Minister of Revenue, Li Youzi, to allocate 300,000 taels of silver to take charge of this matter."

"That's good." Empress Dowager Li nodded lightly and continued, "It has been eleven years since the Wanli Emperor's reign. Without you, Mr. Zhang, there would be no great achievements of our Emperor Wanli."

"We organized this Aoshan Lantern Festival especially for you."

"what?!"

Zhang Juzheng suddenly raised his head, and Empress Dowager Li cast a look at him. The two looked at each other, and Empress Dowager Li asked softly, "Mr. Zhang, what do you think of us?"

"The Queen Mother is dignified and elegant, and is a role model for women all over the world."

"But the Queen Mother is also a woman, a woman whose husband has died. Sometimes, I don't want to be the Queen Mother, but an ordinary woman," said the Queen Mother Li, her big eyes already shining.

Zhang Juzheng didn't dare to respond. He just held his head and trembled.

After a moment of silence, Empress Dowager Li wiped her moist eyes and said with a forced smile, "Mr. Zhang, please go down. I am a little tired."

"The minister obeys the order."

(End of this chapter)