The First Uncle of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 193 Should I die to prove my integrity?

It has been four years since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, but some things seem to have not changed.

Take the Meridian Gate for example, it always seems to be in a mess.

In the past two years, civil and military officials had to race to and from the court, and the scene was like snatching things at the market. They didn't look like important civil and military officials at all.

Now, some lower-ranking civil and military officials can only watch from a distance. Only those above the fourth rank can watch from the outside.

The second-rank civil officials were either grabbed by the collar, or had their necks pinched or their shoulders pressed by the super-rank dukes or first-rank military generals.

Tao Kai was very ashamed and annoyed, and argued loudly, "Why did Lord Xu say that? We are loyal to our country, how could we have other thoughts?"

Zhan Tong also struggled hard, "Let go! Wang Baobao's sister is a virtuous woman from a famous family, and a perfect match for her. How can she not be the Princess of Qin?"

"A virtuous daughter of a famous family?" Ma Xun scolded immediately, "Wang Baobao's biological father was nothing more than a man who followed the Mongolian army southward in his early years and settled in Henan. At the end of the Yuan Dynasty, the government troops were unable to fight, so these people organized armed forces. Is this a famous family?"

Ma Xun then continued to retort, "If that's the case, then the Duke of Wei is even more famous. His father and brother spent all their family wealth to organize tens of thousands of people to fight against the Tartars. Does this count as a famous family?"

It is a bit of a stretch to say that Wang Baobao is from a famous family, as he is a landlord. If this is considered a high-class family, then the landlord class is a famous family.

You can’t say that your Mongolian landlords are famous families, but the Han landlords are not famous families!
"Besides, Wang Baobao's father was nothing more than a landlord who failed to pass the imperial examination. How could he be considered a famous family?" Ma Xun continued to question, "So, all those above the level of scholar in the Ming Dynasty are descendants of famous families?"

Ma Xun's words certainly made sense. In terms of family background, Wang Baobao and others were not really descendants of famous families. They only gained power when Wang Baobao's father and adoptive father were alive.

If this is the case, then these nobles of the Ming Dynasty are all descendants of famous families. It would be unreasonable for anyone to say that Chang Yuchun and others are bandits.

After all, the Minister of Rites has set the tone. Warlords like Wang Baobao, who rose to prominence from the landlord class by suppressing the Red Turban Army, are all from famous families. Then which of these nobles in the Ming Dynasty is not from a truly famous family?
Tao Kai's face flushed, "You're just making up a story!"

"Who is making up stories?" Ma Xun questioned, "Wang Baobao's family background is there. He became the King of Henan and the King of Qi. Does this make him a famous family?"

Song Lian, who was not far away, shouted loudly, "Duke Xu, we suggest that Wang Baobao's sister be made the Princess of Qin. We have no other intentions."

Ma Xun glanced at Song Lian and said, "If you were not my good friend from Mount Tai, and if it were not for the fact that you enlightened the prince, you would have no right to talk to me at this moment!"

Song Lian was very angry, but he seemed to have no way to vent. The rank difference was too big. He was a fifth-rank official, and was respected as a "great scholar" and "prince's teacher".

Zhan Tong said at this time, "Duke Xu, the Crown Prince is wise, and we have no other thoughts."

This is also what Zhan Tong thought in his heart. They did all this, and they definitely had no idea about the position of the crown prince. To some extent, it was for the status of Crown Prince Zhu Biao.

Compared with the King of Qin, who was fond of military affairs but not very familiar with them, these civil servants were closer to Zhu Biao, who had been well-read since childhood and was gentle and elegant. This was the standard template for the crown prince.

Ma Xun asked Zhan Tong, "You have no other thoughts? The King of Qin will definitely be enfeoffed in Xi'an in the future. Wang Baobao previously occupied Shaanxi and Gansu. How can I be convinced that you have no other thoughts?"

Wang Yi, who was being strangled by Guo Decheng, suddenly shouted, "Why should you believe me? This is a matter of national importance!"

Guo Decheng was annoyed, and seemingly just took a step forward, but he bent his elbow and hit Wang Yi in the chest. When Wang Yi groaned and bent over, Guo Decheng raised his knee and hit him inadvertently.

Wang Yi suddenly rolled backwards and curled up on the ground.

"Be careful, Third Brother." Ma Xun felt that Guo Decheng and the others might be planning to do something shady, so he quickly shouted, "That man is my subordinate, and I need him to do something."

Guo Decheng immediately picked up the coughing Wang Yi and said, "Uncle, you misunderstood. This gentleman is weak and fell. I helped him up!"

Wang Yi was not the only one who felt humiliated. All the civil servants shared the same hatred for the enemy, but it seemed there was nothing they could do.

Duke Cao is relatively steady and honest, but Duke Xu is now unreasonable and is in the same boat with these Huaixi nobles.

Many people even felt that the Duke of Xu was defending the people of Huaixi under the pretext of fighting for the King of Qin.

Ma Xun didn't care about the incident next to him and continued to question, "You said you didn't have any other thoughts, so I took it as a belief."

Zhan Tong replied angrily, "We really don't have any other thoughts!"

Ma Xun sneered and said, "You have no intention of instigating a change of crown prince, but I'm afraid you have the intention of alienating the father-son relationship of the royal family. You want to see the brothers of our Ming Dynasty quarreling with each other, right?"

"Brothers quarrel within the walls, but join hands to defend against foreign enemies." This means that brothers can put aside some disputes and join hands to deal with foreign enemies.

When brothers quarrel, it means fighting within the same family and causing trouble within the family.

Zhan Tong's face changed and he shouted, "Duke Xu, be careful with your words! What grudge do you have against me that you need to frame me like this?"

"False accusation?" Ma Xun asked directly, "The position of the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace is stable and there is no need to say more. I'm afraid you all think that's not enough? His Royal Highness the Prince of Qin is only one year younger than His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. He made a woman of a foreign race his Princess, and she comes from a family of treacherous villains. You guys are so good, I'm afraid you want to take credit for this?" Ma Xun's words made Zhan Tong and others look even uglier. Letting the King of Qin marry 'Zhao Min' did have some 'other thoughts', and what Ma Xun said were just some of the small reasons.

After all, the position of the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace is unprecedentedly stable, but some people think that this is not safe enough, and more protection would naturally be better.

As for trying to persuade Wang Baobao to surrender, everyone knew that it would be impossible.

Moreover, even if the surrender was offered, regardless of whether the emperor would be at ease or not, it would be impossible for the civil and military officials in the court to be at ease.

Tao Kai could only say at this time, "Duke Xu, we are frank and have no other intentions. Even in front of His Majesty, we will speak so frankly."

Ma Xun stared at Tao Kai and asked, "Since you don't intend to embarrass the King of Qin and the Crown Prince, then you think the royal family shouldn't marry nobles?"

Zhan Tong knew that he couldn't get away with being vague, so he said, "Her Majesty the Queen is well-read in history books, and the King's uncle loves historical books of all dynasties."

Ma Xun said directly, "Minister of Personnel, do you want me to commit suicide in front of the emperor?"

Zhan Tong's legs suddenly went weak. He had no intention of forcing Ma Xun to death.

I only vaguely mentioned that in history there were too many cases of collusion between princes and generals. I did not mention anything about foreign relatives seizing power, let alone the intention of mentioning Emperor Wen of Sui and others.

If Ma Xun really wanted to "die to prove his integrity", not only would Zhan Tong and his people be doomed, but his entire clan would also be unable to escape.

Tao Kai hurriedly explained, "Why do you say that, uncle? I just think that many of the nobles are overbearing and pervert the law."

"People from famous and scholarly families should obey the law and be loyal to the country?" Ma Xun asked in return, "Nobles should not marry into the royal family. The princess should choose a civil servant, right?"

Tao Kai and others were speechless for a moment. They did have such thoughts, and it could even be said to be one of the biggest motives.

They had no choice but to accept Zhu Biao's marriage, as the emperor had no intention of seeking the opinions of the civil servants from the very beginning.

But Zhu Chong is different. He is the King of Qin and the leader of all the royal princes of the Ming Dynasty.

According to the current trend, if Zhu Chong marries Deng Yu's daughter, Prince of Jin Zhu Gang will definitely marry the daughter of a noble family.

But once something was accomplished, it broke the "rule" that the princes of the Ming Dynasty must choose their concubines from the families of nobles.

When the time comes, shouldn’t the princess be chosen from a civil servant with good character and reputation?

At that time, would the Crown Princess and even the Queen also have to be chosen from civil servants?
The nobles wanted to monopolize the position of becoming the legitimate wife of the prince and grandson of the emperor, but the civil officials were unwilling to agree to this.

So what if Zhu Chong and Deng were in love and had been childhood sweethearts? It was not worth mentioning at all when it came to such an important matter as the country.

For the sake of the country, Deng Yu's daughter can also become the concubine of the King of Qin. Why can't your daughter, the legitimate daughter of a duke, be a concubine when the civil servants are concubines?
Looking at the constantly changing expressions of Zhan Tong and Tao Kai, Ma Xun felt that he had guessed correctly. These people really wanted to kill two birds with one stone.

The attempt to persuade Wang Baobao to surrender was just a cover, and the so-called virtuous ladies from noble families were just motives to achieve their own political demands.

Ma Xun angrily brushed off the collars of Tao Kai and Zhan Tong, "You guys are really thinking well, you really care about the country. The King of Qin has stopped the path of being appointed as the crown prince, and you dare not offend the Duke of Wei, the Duke of Zheng, and the Duke of Han, and use the benevolent Duke of Wei to establish your authority?"

Tao Kai said in a pleading tone, "My Lord, the Duke of Wei has made outstanding contributions. I admire him so much that I dare not offend him."

"Don't dare?" Ma Xun asked curiously, "When you mentioned this earlier, I thought you were just impulsive. Now that I see it again, I'm afraid you have been planning this for a long time, right?"

Xu Da, Chang Yuchun and Deng Yu were not in the capital. Tang He, Zhou Dexing, Liao Yongzhong and others were also fighting outside. Ma Xun even went to Fengyang to supervise the princes.

The core strength of the Huaixi nobles is not in the capital, but these people are in a hurry to get things done. Hasn't that meant they have been preparing for a long time?

Suddenly, a voice came from the outside, "Duke Xu, we are the ones who receive your salary, so we should share your worries. If there is something that benefits the country and the people, we will do it, even if it angers the Duke and makes Duke Wei furious."

At this moment, many people immediately looked at the warrior who spoke. At this critical juncture, he was adding fuel to the fire!

Ma Xun smiled kindly and looked at the elegant old man, "I wonder what position this gentleman holds?"

The elegant old man said, "I am Lü Ben, the left secretary of the Secretariat, and I am from Shouzhou, Fengyang."

Ma Xun immediately looked around. Li Shanchang, who was hiding at the outermost edge, hurriedly said, "Little brother, I am not familiar with Lu Ben."

Not every person from Fengyang was a nobleman from Huaixi. This Lu Ben was a scholar and had served as an official in the Yuan Dynasty.

Ma Xun smiled and bowed to Li Shanchang, "Prime Minister Li, I'm afraid there is some misunderstanding between you and me. Let's take some time out in a couple of days to have a drink and have a good chat to clear up the misunderstanding."

Li Shanchang was helpless. There was nothing to talk about between you and me. I am now afraid of your mouth and your messy medical skills. I don't want to get sick again for no apparent reason!
Especially when I am not sick, you insist on saying that I am sick!
(End of this chapter)