I was compiling the daily records during the Wanli reign

Chapter 192 Praise to Kill! Zhang Siwei: Land surveying is feasible, but Shen Nian's entry into the cabinet is not.
It was nighttime on the fourteenth day of the first lunar month.

Inside a luxurious mansion in Xi'an Prefecture, Shaanxi Province.

A group of familiar officials, gentry, merchants, and landlords gathered together.

Every year before the Lantern Festival, they hold such a gathering so that they can help each other in the new year.

“Alas! Once the policy of suppressing land annexation is implemented, my family’s land will be reduced by at least 40%. This… this life is simply unbearable!” said a middle-aged landlord with a fat body and a double chin.

A gentryman dressed in a scholar's robe rolled his eyes and said, "Everyone in Xi'an Prefecture knows how you acquired those forty percent of your land. You certainly can't keep it! My family's land is a legacy accumulated by our ancestors over generations. If we pay high taxes, we simply can't survive and will have to sell it! In this day and age, it's better to be a commoner at the bottom of society!"

At this time.

A merchant looked at the crowd and asked, "Do any of you have a good plan that makes this plan difficult to implement?"

not far away.

A middle-aged man with a fair complexion, sitting in the center, shook his head slightly and said, "This time is different from usual. I received news from the Eastern Depot that His Majesty has ordered the people of the world to discuss this matter. The purpose is not to see the people's feedback, but to investigate anyone who opposes it!"

Hear this.

Everyone else couldn't help but shudder.

"Alas! His Majesty can even execute the Marquis of Wuqing, let alone us?"

"I heard that the Prince of Qin in the west of the city has begun selling the land he has annexed, and will also dismiss a large number of tenants and servants after the New Year. These feudal lords flaunt their power in front of us, but in front of His Majesty, they are as docile as rabbits! It will be difficult for them to cheat the court out of land by having children in the future!"

"What, you're still counting on them to be the first to stick their necks out? Ever since the Prince of Zhou in Henan compromised last year, all these princes have bowed their heads. They're afraid of losing their titles and the court stopping their stipends, so they don't dare to rebel at all!"

At this moment, the middle-aged man sitting in the middle said, "Gentlemen, I suggest that we remain still and observe the wind direction. If no one resists, we will comply; if someone resists, we will quietly add fuel to the fire!"

Others nodded.

At this moment, many local clans, gentry, and merchants have not yet expressed their opinions; they are waiting for the first person to become restless to launch a rebellion.

at the same time.

The people have exposed the tax-exempt farmland that some merchants and powerful figures have seized under the guise of temples and monasteries.

Land acquired in this way violates the laws of the Ming Dynasty. Once exposed, local officials dare not ignore it.

……

Shangyuan night.

Southern Zhili, Yingtian Prefecture, Nanjing City.

Along the Qinhuai River, colorful lanterns glittered, and pleasure boats shuttled back and forth, creating a lively scene.

Inside a magnificent pleasure boat in the middle of the river.

Zhang Siwei, Minister of Rites in Nanjing; Zhao Jin, Minister of Justice in Nanjing; Song Yiwang, Chief Justice of the Court of Judicial Review in Nanjing; and Tu Yiying, Chief Justice of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices in Nanjing, sat in a cabin with a view.

Zhang Siwei held a wine glass, admiring the night view of the Qinhuai River through the window.

The other three all frowned.

Most of the officials serving in Nanjing were on the fringes of their authority or nearing retirement.

Leisurely, powerless, and with few duties.

Because the retirement pension is too small after retirement, many people start doing business and buying land early.

Among these, buying land is a sure-fire way to make money.

Many officials in Nanjing who were about to retire loved buying land the most.

Many people buy hundreds of acres at a time.

Knowing that the imperial court was re-measuring the land, they either registered some land deeds under the names of relatives or servants, concealed the amount of land, or seized unregistered land that local officials had cultivated over several years...

Using their privileges, they circumvented the laws of the Ming Dynasty and were convinced they could evade the imperial land survey.

However, Shen Nian's three strategies for suppressing annexation panicked them all.

These officials, relying on their protégés and old friends, and on personal connections, were not afraid of Shen Nian's proposed fictitious land tax and land monopoly stele, but they were afraid of the power to abolish the imperial examination system.

Fines can be evaded by falsifying data; humiliation can be achieved by having local gentry and powerful figures take the blame. But stripping them of their authority to take the imperial examinations is a truly ruthless move.

No one is willing to take the blame.

For these official families, removing the right to take the imperial examinations was tantamount to cutting off their future livelihood.

Their connections and power are all in officialdom. If their children and grandchildren cannot enter officialdom, the family will be cut off from the next generation, and the family may decline rapidly and never recover.

Zhao Jin, the Minister of Justice in Nanjing, looked at Zhang Siwei, unable to understand why the latter could remain so calm.

His family is banned from doing business, he is prohibited from returning to Shanxi, and he had just bought thousands of acres of land three months ago, but now he is not allowed to farm it anymore.

He was arguably the most miserable official.

Zhang Siwei was probably the most anxious and furious.

But he smiled as he admired the beautiful scenery of the Qinhuai River.

"Lord Fengpan, your three policies to suppress land annexation undermine the ancestral laws of our Great Ming Dynasty that have been in place for two hundred years, and shake the foundation of the gentry. The gentry are the head of the four classes of people. If we cannot even protect our own lives, how can we assist the court in governing the country? Let us jointly submit a memorial to oppose this policy!"

Zhang Siwei turned his face away and shook his head.

"No, we not only cannot oppose it, but we must also submit a memorial to the emperor in support!"

"Why?" asked Song Yiwang, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review in Nanjing, with a puzzled expression.

"Because opposing this policy is opposing His Majesty and the court. At present, His Majesty is bewitched by Shen Nian and his attitude is tough. If we make a scene, it will only lead to one thing happening."

"What's the matter?"

"His Majesty has ordered Grand Secretary Zhang to return to court despite his mourning period!" Zhang Siwei said.

Zhang Siwei still harbors a dream of becoming the Grand Secretary.

He didn't care about how land surveying was conducted nationwide; he only cared about who sat in the position of Grand Secretary.

"Haven't you noticed the large number of secret police and imperial guards coming to Yingtian Prefecture lately? Right now, on a small boat to our northwest, there are very likely plainclothes imperial guards sitting there!"

"If you keep frowning, making it clear to them that you are discussing official business rather than enjoying the scenery, they will soon report to His Majesty!"

Upon hearing this, the other three quickly forced smiles and pretended to admire the scenery.

At present, Emperor Wanli will not allow them to retire in order to maintain the stability of Southern Zhili. However, if they oppose the immediate land survey across the country, causing Zhang Juzheng to return to court ahead of schedule, Zhang Juzheng can force them to retire with a single word.

Zhang Siwei paused for a moment.

"I've already figured out what to do!"

"First, after the Lantern Festival, we will submit a memorial to express our support for the three policies proposed by Shen Nian. Verbal support is sufficient. We will deal with the situation according to the circumstances when the land survey comes to us. In this way, we will not be targeted, and His Majesty will not be able to find a sufficient reason to make Grand Secretary Zhang return to court."

"Secondly, we should use our connections to persuade scholars and literati in the capital, Nanjing, and Jiangnan to write articles praising Shen Nian, and ideally, to pin the title of 'Young Grand Secretary' on him!"

“The tallest tree in the forest will be felled by the wind. The strategy of suppressing annexation is feasible, but it is not acceptable for Shen Nian to join the cabinet in the future!” Zhang Siwei said firmly.

Currently, Zhang Siwei hates Shen Nian the most.

If Shen Nian had not recommended Hai Rui to thoroughly investigate the Zhang and Wang families, he would not have gone from being a cabinet minister to the Minister of Rites in Nanjing.

If Shen Nian had not proposed the establishment of the Drafting Office, and given that Zhang Juzheng was in mourning after his death, there would have been no capable ministers in the cabinet, it was highly likely that he would have entered the cabinet as acting Grand Secretary.

Now, everything has been ruined by Shen Nian.

Zhang Siwei was not capable of overthrowing Zhang Juzheng.

However, once Zhang Juzheng retired, apart from Shen Nian, none of the other officials who could enter the cabinet were as good as him.

Therefore, he planned to praise Shen Nian to death, waiting for Shen Nian to make a mistake and fall from the clouds into the abyss.

In his mind, the three policies of suppressing annexation could be implemented, but Shen Nian was getting closer and closer to joining the cabinet, so it was absolutely not allowed.

The best way to ruin someone is to praise them to death; he had already figured out how to deal with Shen Nianzhi.

(End of this chapter)