Ming Dynasty: Ask Zhu Yuanzhang to abdicate at the beginning

Chapter 593 A God-Given Opportunity! The Way of the King versus the Way of the Hegemon!

Zhu Su also sighed, and said with feigned concern, "What you say is absolutely right, sir."

"Although I have lived in the Western Regions for a long time, what I have seen along the way is that the new learning is gaining momentum in the Ming Dynasty court, and with the Emperor's strong support, it is already the orthodox school."

"Sir, it's fine if you only share these heartfelt words with me. But if you were to speak in front of others, I hope you would be careful with your words, protect yourself wisely, and not bring trouble upon yourself because of a moment of anger."

Zhu Su's "persuasion" was tantamount to adding fuel to the fire.

Upon hearing this, Wang Shoulian not only did not back down in the slightest, but was instead filled with the "loyal and courageous spirit of a minister"!
He slammed his hand on the table, stood up abruptly, his hair and beard bristling, and said angrily, "The Emperor has been deceived by treacherous officials! We, as subjects of the Ming Dynasty who receive their salaries, are witnessing the collapse of the Great Way. How can we remain silent and live in disgrace?!"

"Previously, we were simply unable to act because the time was not right!"

"I have already devised a plan. On the day of the Confucius memorial ceremony in Qufu, I will definitely contact my colleagues in the court and remonstrate with His Majesty before the tablet of the sage!"

This is truly a godsend!
Zhu Su's heart was in turmoil, but his face remained calm. Instead, he took a step back and solemnly bowed deeply to the ground.
"Your Excellency, in order to uphold the sacred Way, have such a determination to disregard life and death. You are truly a pillar of the nation and a model for all scholars! I am filled with utmost respect!"

He straightened up, changed the subject, and advised in the tone of a strategist: "However, Your Excellency's body is of great use and is the hope of the righteous path of the world. How can you easily die in vain?"

"In my humble opinion, this matter is of utmost importance. We must plan carefully before taking action in order to achieve our goal in one fell swoop."

Wang Shoulian waved his hand, his expression carrying a long-suppressed resolve: "What you say, sir, is something I am well aware of."

"That is why I have been patient until now."

"That cheating scandal in the imperial examinations was a golden opportunity to bring down Fang Xiaoru, but he managed to slip away unscathed!"

"The imperial court summoned great Confucian scholars to prepare for a debate on the orthodoxy of the new learning, but in the end, it came to nothing."

“Since then, the new doctrines have been like a runaway horse, and no one can control them. We, the true disciples of the sages, can only lie low for now and wait for the right opportunity.”

"Now that His Majesty has personally come to Qufu to pay homage to Confucius, this is the best opportunity bestowed upon us by the Sage!"

"If you miss this opportunity, it will be too late to regret it!"

He lowered his voice, his eyes gleaming with fanaticism, "To be honest, sir, I have secretly contacted several like-minded individuals, all of whom are loyal and virtuous officials in the court who have disregarded their own lives and fortunes."

"On the day of the Confucius memorial ceremony, we will stand before the sage's tablet, weep blood, and plead with the emperor to abolish the new schools and execute Fang Xiaoru!"

Zhu Su lowered his eyes and did not respond immediately.

Countless thoughts flashed through his mind.

By doing this, Wang Shoulian had staked his life and the future of the entire conservative faction on this "death plea."

He revealed such core secrets in the open, ostensibly out of trust, but in reality... it was also a form of blackmail!
If he hesitates even slightly at this moment, or stands aside, he, the "insider," will instantly transform from a "confidant" into a "major threat" that he must eliminate!
In the power struggles of officialdom, once you're involved, you're either a friend or an enemy!
His desire to be a detached "outsider" is now impossible.

Having understood this, Zhu Su no longer hesitated.

He suddenly looked up, his eyes also blazing with fire: "Sir, your righteousness is the highest I have ever seen in my life."

"Since Your Excellency has already made this decision, the more people present when you submit your memorial, the better."

"Although I come from the Western Regions, my roots are in the Ming Dynasty."

"Moreover, now that the Western Regions have been pacified, Beshbaliq has come under the control of the Ming Dynasty. I, Cao, am no longer a foreigner, but a subject of the Ming Dynasty."

"To continue the lost learning of the sages and to usher in an era of peace for all generations—this is the common aspiration of all scholars in the world!"

"Since you have this intention, my lord, although I am not very talented or learned, I am willing to follow you and do this even at the cost of my life!"

Wang Shoulian's eyes gleamed, and he clapped his hands excitedly, laughing loudly, "Good! Good! Good! I knew I hadn't misjudged you, sir!"

"With the help of a righteous man like you, sir, what is there to worry about in achieving great things!"

Immediately, his expression turned solemn, and he said in a deep voice, "However, this matter is extremely dangerous. If we are not careful, it could lead to the extermination of our clan and the death of our people."

"If you have this intention, then you should disregard life and death."

"To be honest, I have already made all the necessary arrangements for my funeral."

Zhu Su laughed loudly, his laughter filled with boldness and unbridled spirit: "Rest assured, my lord! Since I settled in the Western Regions, I have not yet married or had children, and I have no ties whatsoever."

"My life has long been dedicated to the country; why should I speak of family?"

"To die for upholding the sacred Way is a worthy death, how joyous! How joyous!"

What he was referring to at that moment was his identity as "Dr. Cao".

The original Zhou king naturally had sons, and more than one.

However, after his rebellion failed, although he escaped, his family could not.

His sons were all imprisoned.

If this succeeds, getting them out of prison will be a piece of cake; if it fails, thinking about it further will be of no use.

Wang Shoulian was also moved by his heroic spirit and laughed heartily.

Zhu Su lowered his eyes, concealing the fleeting, fiery ambition that burned like magma.

In his heart, it was no longer a tragic "die-hard remonstrance," but a magnificent and sweeping panorama:

Zhu Yunwen's death shocked the court and the public.

And he, Zhu Su, will step over the corpses and ideals of these corrupt scholars, and with the support of the masses, rightfully ascend the throne!

Now that the two had formed an alliance, Wang Shoulian held nothing back. He treated Zhu Su as a confidant, lowered his voice, and revealed all the details of his plan.

According to their plan, when the emperor was to offer sacrifices to Confucius, an imperial censor would first weep and plead before the sage's tablet, and then all the officials would follow suit and submit a memorial, forcing the emperor to issue an edict on the spot in the name of the greater good of the nation.

“Sir, you are not one of the officials of the Central Plains. There are some things that cannot be said to our own people, but I feel more at ease telling you,” Wang Shoulian said frankly.

He knew all too well that the officialdom of the Ming Dynasty was a complex web of interpersonal relationships, where one could know a person's face but not their heart, and that today's ally might be tomorrow's traitor.

Zhu Su's identity as a "visitor from another region" actually served as a natural camouflage.

After all, he had no connections in the officialdom of the Central Plains, nor any relatives or friends.

These two points alone are enough to put people at ease.

Otherwise, given Wang Shoulian's cautious nature as an official, he would never have easily spoken to Zhu Su about it.

If I really had to tell you, I would have to test you several times and confirm repeatedly before slowly revealing the truth.

In officialdom, those who act without caution rarely last long.

Wang Shoulian, who was able to become an imperial inspector, naturally understood this principle.

Zhu Su listened quietly, and first praised, "Your Excellency is far-sighted. This plan takes the great cause of the world as its banner and the temple of the sage as its platform. It can be said that you have taken full advantage of the right time, the right place, and the right people."

Then, he frowned slightly, "However, the current emperor's willpower is far stronger than that of ordinary people."

"Although he did not explicitly express his support for the new school, his actual attitude was obvious to everyone."

"We, the civil officials, are unlikely to be able to persuade them to change their ways even if we weep and die in remonstrance."

Wang Shoulian sighed deeply: "What you are worried about, sir, is something I am well aware of."

"However, since ancient times, 'warriors die in battle, and scholars die remonstrating.' Whether we succeed or fail, it is merely fulfilling our duty as ministers and leaving the rest to fate."

Zhu Su seemed to be deep in thought, and after a long pause, he said, "If we could get Governor Li's assistance in this matter, the momentum would be even greater. I wonder, sir..."

“Li Chongwen?” Wang Shoulian interrupted angrily as if he had heard something foul. “He’s nothing but a sycophant!”

"With eyes only set on economic gain and wealth, how could they possibly heed the teachings of the sages?"

"Since he took office as governor, he has never talked about morality or literature, only about the economy, how many factories he has built, how many roads and bridges he has repaired, how much the fiscal revenue has increased, and so on."

"He's obsessed with money." "The evaluation of subordinate bureaucrats is not based on their morality and character, but on the economic development of the region they govern and the amount of tax revenue."

"He would give high praise as long as the economy performed well and fiscal revenue increased significantly."

“They even turn a blind eye to the corruption of these officials.”

"It is said that it is better to have a capable and efficient official who is greedy for money than an honest official who is arrogant but incompetent."

"They also said that as long as the greed isn't excessive, there's no need to investigate further."

"It's all fallacies and heresies."

"It's a pity that I haven't caught him with any evidence of embezzlement yet, otherwise I would have already reported him to the authorities."

"But in any case, I am ashamed to associate with such a despicable person!"

"If we succeed this time, the first thing we will do is petition His Majesty to dismiss him from his post!"

"Cooperating with him is absolutely out of the question!"

"Besides, he wouldn't agree to this. He might even turn around and tell His Majesty, ruining our plan."

"To get this done, we must not only avoid contacting him, but we must also keep it a secret from him."

That was exactly what Zhu Su wanted to hear.

Throwing Li Chongwen out was just a prelude.

He waited until Wang Shoulian's anger subsided before slowly shaking his head, leaning slightly forward, and softly uttering two words in a voice only the two of them could hear:

"Military general".

These two words seemed to carry the weight of a thousand pounds, striking Wang Shoulian's heart hard.

His pupils suddenly shrank to the size of pinpoints!
He sprang up from his chair as if stung by a scorpion, his breath catching in his throat, and he growled in a hoarse voice, "No! Absolutely not! Has the master gone mad?"

He lowered his voice and said urgently, "We, the civil officials, are willing to die to remonstrate with the emperor, seeking to cleanse the court of corrupt officials and restore order to the dynasty!"

"If weapons are used, that would be treason!"

"They are traitors and rebels!"

"Even a thousand deaths cannot atone for my sins!"

"Even after thousands of years, they will still be cursed by future generations."

"Moreover, the current commanders of the new army all come from military academies; they are the emperor's students, and they are utterly loyal to His Majesty."

"How could we possibly heed our words?"

"Although I am the Shandong Provincial Inspector, I have no authority to mobilize troops. The Shandong garrison only obeys the orders of the Military Affairs Office. Even if the Minister of State Affairs were to come in person, they would not obey orders, let alone us?"

"Without His Majesty's decree, not a single soldier can be mobilized!"

Seeing his astonishment, Zhu Su smiled faintly and shook his head calmly: "My lord, you have misunderstood."

“What I am saying is not to carry out a ‘military remonstrance’ to usurp the throne, but to add a foolproof ‘insurance’ to our ‘remonstrance to the death’.”

He gestured for Wang Shoulian to sit down before slowly and methodically analyzing, "To mobilize the new army personally created by His Majesty is, of course, a pipe dream."

"But what I saw along the way was that in the provinces of the Ming Dynasty, in addition to the new army, there were still a large number of 'Wu Ding' (military officers)."

"Most of them were converted from the old army and were under the jurisdiction of local government. Although their equipment and combat power were far inferior to the new army, they were still a force to be reckoned with."

"Its jurisdiction is under the control of the governor and the imperial inspector."

"This is so that the provincial government can mobilize troops to quell any unrest in the region at any time."

"Instead of suffering from a lack of military power and being unable to mobilize the garrison, thus missing the initiative and allowing the disaster to escalate and become uncontrollable."

"The lord may not be able to mobilize the regular new army, but mobilizing a portion of the 'Wu Ding' should not be difficult."

He looked at Wang Shoulian, his eyes gleaming with a dangerous yet alluring light:

"We are not here to conquer cities and territories, nor do we need them to have strong combat power."

"The key is to 'deploy troops' before His Majesty when he hesitates, so that he understands that the hearts of the people are not only in literature, but also in military force!"

"At that time, with officials remonstrating to the death within the court and King Wu Ding deploying his troops outside, even if Your Majesty is a divine dragon from the heavens, you will have no choice but to... comply with our request in the face of such internal and external forces!"

Wang Shoulian did not answer immediately.

His slender fingers tapped lightly on the pearwood table, making soft 'tap, tap' sounds.

The sound echoed in the room, sounding exceptionally clear, as if each note struck a chord in one's heart.

Clearly, he was in a state of hesitation and contemplation.

Zhu Su did not urge him, but simply sat upright, sipping tea and waiting for the next part to be told.

After a long pause, Wang Shoulian slowly shook his head, his voice tinged with weariness and helplessness: "Sir, your plan seems feasible, but in reality it's like building a tower on sand, with an unstable foundation."

He explained, “Although I can nominally mobilize Wu Ding, according to the regulations of the court, the document must be signed by Governor Li Chongwen, and he would never agree to it.”

"Even if I could bypass him and force the order, would those soldiers really obey?"

“The power of us civil officials comes from the laws and regulations of the court, not from the fact that the soldiers truly obey me, follow me, or are willing to follow me.”

"This kind of military power is completely different from the general's command of troops. It is a 'nominal power'."

"With this 'nominal power,' it's acceptable to get them to act according to the rules."

"But to get them to follow us in doing this extraordinary thing is to make them gamble with their lives and fortunes!"

“They are all crude and vulgar warriors who only know how to be loyal to the emperor and obey the court’s orders. They do not understand the great principles of the sages, nor do they know the dangers of the new learning. How could they possibly help us take chestnuts out of the fire?”

"At that time, His Majesty will only need to issue an imperial edict, and they will immediately turn against us and bind us before the Emperor!"

"This is absolutely unacceptable!"

Wang Shoulian had a very clear understanding of this.

The real military commanders spend their days with their soldiers, treating them like brothers. These ordinary soldiers, out of loyalty and brotherhood, will obey their orders and follow the commanders even without instructions from the imperial court.

Therefore, the military power of a general is real military power.

Civil officials' military power relied entirely on the name of the imperial court and on regulations and systems.

Without a righteous cause, the soldiers in the army will only treat them like dirt!
It's absolutely impossible for them to follow orders.

This is why dynasties throughout history have always "used civil officials to control military forces."

Wang Shoulian, as an imperial inspector, was well aware of this.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Su revealed a mysterious smile: "What you are concerned about is all reasonable."

"However, there are two ways to govern people: the 'kingly way' and the 'tyrannical way'."

"Using official positions to issue orders is the 'kingly way'; if this path is blocked, why not temporarily resort to the 'tyrannical way'?"

Wang Shoulian was taken aback and asked in astonishment, "What do you mean?"

……

(End of this chapter)