I was compiling the daily records during the Wanli reign

Chapter 201 Self-immolation to Resist Land Measurement? Shen Nian: You Can't Be Heroes
It was nearly noon.

In the western hills of the capital, in front of the fields of Jietai Temple.

Yin Zhengmao, Feng Bao, Jin Lijing, Shen Nian and others stood on the edge of the field, occasionally glancing at the eye-catching wooden sign that read "Field Bestowed by the Holy Mother".

The officials of Shuntian Prefecture, armed with bows and ropes, were ready to measure the fields.

If Feng Bao hadn't been there, Yin Zhengmao would have already ordered a forced land survey.

Three monks from Jietai Temple stood in front of the field, staring at the clerks with eyes that looked as if they were thieves.

at this time.

Five carriages sped over and stopped on the dirt road about fifty paces from the temple field. More than twenty monks dressed in loose, dark yellow robes jumped off the carriages.

The two leading monks were tall and stout, and walked very fast.

It is highly likely that he was the treasurer in charge of Jietai Temple's finances and logistics, and the landowner in charge of the land and grain.

soon.

The two leading monks were the first to approach Yin Zhengmao and the others.

Monks and Taoists of the Ming Dynasty did not bow to officials.

The two monks put their hands together, bowed slightly to Yin Zhengmao who was standing in the middle, and called out in unison: Amitabha!
"This humble monk's Dharma name is Yuande, and I am temporarily serving as the treasurer of Jietai Temple!"

"This humble monk's Dharma name is Yuanshen, and I am temporarily serving as the owner of the Jietai Temple estate!"

Immediately, Monk Yuanshen took out a booklet from his bosom and looked at Yin Zhengmao and the other three.

"Grand Secretary Yin, Eunuch Feng, Prefect Jin, and Lecturer Shen, this account book is the general ledger of land at Jietai Temple, which includes the amount of land granted by the royal family, incense land, merit land, and land owned by the temple itself. Among them, the self-owned land is no more than two hundred mu, all of which are exempt from tax."

Monk Yuan Shen, who manages temple lands, has close ties with eunuchs in the inner court. He learned last night that Yin Zhengmao and his three companions would be coming to survey the lands.

I just didn't expect them to head straight for Terada.

Say it.

He handed the booklet to Yin Zhengmao with both hands.

The monk Yuande, who was standing nearby, added: "The contents of this ledger have been reviewed by the Buddhist Registry and have been confirmed to be correct."

Yin Zhengmao glanced at the account book and said, "All land in the country should be registered in the Yellow Register. The Ministry of Revenue has no information on the land owned by Jietai Temple, so this account book is invalid!"

Yin Zhengmao had no intention of even looking through the ledger.

He was certain that the ledger had been forged by Jietai Temple recently.

These confiscated fields involved eunuchs and imperial relatives, so the Buddhist Registry turned a blind eye and approved the account book.

The exact number of royal-granted fields, incense fields, and merit fields is a complete mystery.

The more they argue, the more complicated it becomes, and the exact number is impossible to ascertain.

Yin Zhengmao's plan was to first measure the land, and then treat all land without a written imperial decree as hidden land.

Upon hearing this, Feng Bao's expression immediately turned somewhat displeased.

"Grand Secretary Yin, you must be mistaken! The nation's finances are under the Ministry of Revenue, but religious affairs are under the Ministry of Rites. The land owned by temples only needs to be reviewed by the Buddhist Registry and reported to the Ministry of Rites for record-keeping."

Feng Bao spoke on behalf of the monks.

One reason is that these land consolidations were related to many eunuchs in the inner court.

On the other hand, Empress Dowager Li was a devout Buddhist, and if it were discovered that Buddhist temples had acquired a large amount of land, it would affect the dignity of Buddhism.

"How could I be wrong! Ever since His Majesty issued the edict to survey the land throughout the country, religious lands have been classified as official lands, which are then managed by the Ministry of Revenue. Moreover, it is still difficult to determine whether these lands are official lands. Next, let's conduct a thorough survey!"

Yin Zhengmao straightened his chest, his voice loud and clear, full of energy.

"Zhangtian!"

Yin Zhengmao waved his hand and looked at the clerks not far away.

At this time.

Monk Yuanshen immediately became anxious and looked at Yin Zhengmao, asking, "Grand Secretary Yin, do you have any decrees?"

"I don't even need an imperial decree to survey the lands of princes, so why would I need an imperial decree to survey a mere temple plot?"

"These are all fields bestowed by the Empress Dowager, and nominally still belong to her. We are merely helping her cultivate the land and using it to accumulate merit and do good deeds. If Grand Secretary Yin forcibly measures the land, he will be destroying the Empress Dowager's merits!"

"Without His Majesty's decree and the Empress Dowager's imperial edict, we will resist with all our might in order to uphold the merits accumulated by the Empress Dowager over the years!"

Upon hearing this, Shen Nian couldn't help but give a wry smile.

"Forcibly measuring the land would destroy the merits of the Holy Mother Empress Dowager!"

Even if this crime were pinned on Zhang Juzheng, he could not bear the consequences.

At this time.

Monk Yuande took a step toward Yin Zhengmao.

"Grand Secretary Yin, when Emperor Taizu was a devout Buddhist, he treated us monks with great respect. Now, the Empress Dowager is a devout Buddhist and is revered by monks throughout the land as the Nine Lotus Bodhisattva. If you were to diminish the Empress Dowager's virtues and defile the purity of Buddhism today, we would absolutely have to report this to His Majesty!"

Immediately, the monk Yuande proclaimed loudly, "All monks of Rongtai Temple, for the sake of the Empress Dowager's merits, protect the fields!"

Immediately, more than twenty monks rushed down into the field to stop them.

Some monks somehow obtained a portrait of Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang, hung it in front of the field, and then began reciting Buddhist scriptures.

This move.

It can be said to be more insidious than most of the tricks that unscrupulous merchants and bullies use to resist Zhang Tian.

Using Zhu Yuanzhang's portrait and Empress Dowager Li's merits as a shield, even the slightest damage to them would be a grave sin.

"Humph!"

Yin Zhengmao snorted coldly, looked at Jin Lijing, the prefect of Shuntian Prefecture, who was somewhat stunned, and said in a cold voice: "Measure the land!"

Jin Lijing, left with no other choice, addressed the assembled officials: "Measure the land!"

Just as the group of clerks rushed to the fields, preparing to forcibly measure them, Feng Bao waved his hand, and the Imperial Guards blocked them.

"Yin Zhengmao, you are a cabinet minister of the current dynasty, not a bandit or robber. How can you be so disrespectful in a Buddhist land! If you still want to measure the land, you can go back to the palace to ask for permission, instead of bullying others by abusing your power!"

"Are you more noble, or is the Holy Mother and Empress Dowager more noble?"

Yin Zhengmao's face darkened, and his mind raced.

Given the current situation, it's highly unlikely that he will be able to get permission to return to the palace to request an imperial decree.

He knew that the clerks were no match for the Imperial Guards, and that force would not work.

Immediately.

He strode toward the fields, snatched a bow from a clerk, and shouted, "I will personally measure these fields. Let's see who dares to stop me!"

Having said that, Yin Zhengmao took his bow and went down into the field. The Imperial Guards quickly dodged.

Without the explicit order of the young Wanli Emperor, they dared not obstruct Yin Zhengmao.

Feng Bao looked at Shen Nian.

“Sir Shen, are you really going to stand by and watch a cabinet minister commit such acts of banditry?”

At this moment, the only one who can stop Yin Zhengmao is Shen Nian.

But Shen Nian didn't really want to stop her.

Because these monks are too arrogant, if they succeed in stopping them today, it will give more temples the confidence to resist to the end.

According to the current thinking of the young Wanli Emperor.

It is clear that if the land can be measured, it should be measured; if it cannot be measured, then leniency should be shown, but force should never be used.

Just as Shen Nian was pondering whether to stop Yin Zhengmao and make a more careful decision.

Several monks suddenly carried a pile of dry branches from the carriage and placed them by the field, with dry grass stuffed between the branches.

Followed by.

Yuan Shen and Yuan De sat on dry tree branches, each holding a tinderbox.

Yuan De held up the tinderbox, blew on it to produce a flame, and then looked at Yin Zhengmao.

"Grand Secretary Yin, if you forcibly measure the land today, we two will immolate ourselves here and use our lives to protect the merits of the Empress Dowager!"

Yuan Shen instructed the younger monks, "If I have any relics on my body after the self-immolation, please give them to the Empress Dowager!"

The two men wore expressions of resolute determination, as if facing death.

"Your mother is a maid!" Yin Zhengmao stopped measuring the field and couldn't help but swear.

“Sending these fertile fields to the people, enabling them to eat and dress well, and making them pay taxes to the court, isn’t that a merit of the Empress Dowager?” Yin Zhengmao retorted.

Upon hearing this, Yuan Shen and Yuan De did not refute it, but instead began reciting Buddhist scriptures.

The monks around him followed suit, chanting Buddhist scriptures.

The desire to die is extremely strong!

If the two of them die here today, Yin Zhengmao's sins of insulting Buddhism and ruining the merits of the Holy Mother and Empress Dowager will be established.

"Come back quickly! Come back quickly!"

Jin Lijing, the prefect of Shuntian Prefecture, immediately backed down and hurriedly ordered the clerks to leave the wheat field.

Yin Zhengmao looked helpless. He had no reason with these monks anymore, and just as he was about to give up.

Shen Nian suddenly walked up to the two of them.

Shen Nian didn't want to leave.

If they withdraw today, the story of these two people's self-immolation to protect the Empress Dowager will spread throughout the world. After that, the young Wanli Emperor will most likely make an exception for temples and their lands, allowing temples to have hidden lands.

Shen Nian looked at the two of them.

"Two eminent monks, quickly immolate yourselves! If you die here, not only will you be posthumously honored as eminent monks by the imperial court, but all the temples in the land will be spared from being surveyed again, and we will no longer have to worry about how to handle this matter!"

As soon as these words came out, everyone was stunned.

"Is he... or is he... insane?" Jin Lijing, the prefect of Shuntian Prefecture, murmured.

If the land survey forces two monks to commit suicide by self-immolation, the matter will escalate to a whole new level!
Some Buddhist believers believe in the Buddha but not in the imperial court.

Given their power, they dared not target the imperial court, but if one of them spat on Shen Nian, it would be enough to drown him.

"Are you afraid, or do you not know how? Do you want me to help you?" Shen Nian walked towards the two of them, her face full of murderous intent.

Yuan Shen and Yuan De had only intended to scare Yin Zhengmao, but they never expected that Shen Nian, this madman, would appear.

at this time.

"Snapped!"

Yuan Shen's hand trembled, and the tinderbox, still glowing, fell to the ground.

"Wow!"

The tinderbox ignited the dry grass, which quickly burned the branches and set the pile of branches beneath them ablaze.

Shen Nian exclaimed excitedly, "The two eminent monks immolated themselves for the sake of the Holy Mother Empress Dowager! How magnificent! How great!"

The fire gradually grew larger.

At this moment, Shen Nian was gambling, gambling that the two men were afraid of death, gambling that they would soon escape the fire.

If they choose to flee, it will not be considered a meritorious act of self-immolation to protect the Empress Dowager, and the matter of the Seijō-ji field can still be discussed.

If they didn't escape, Shen Nian really wouldn't dare let them die by self-immolation.

this moment.

Yin Zhengmao, Feng Bao, and Jin Lijing all saw through Shen Nian's thoughts.

Today, it is certainly impossible to carry out the plan, but as long as the two of them escape the fire, they will not become heroes, nor will they be able to save all the temples in the world from the plan.

Just as Feng Bao was about to order the Embroidered Uniform Guard to rescue them.

Yin Zhengmao grabbed a long sword from a member of the Imperial Guard from the side and shouted, "Whoever saves him, I will cut them down!"

Upon hearing this, Feng Bao dared not speak again.

If Yin Zhengmao goes berserk, he might even be able to chop him up.

The monks standing nearby dared not move, believing that the two were truly intent on self-immolation.

Just as the fire was about to engulf the two of them.

"what!"

A scream like a pig being slaughtered rang out.

Yuan Shen and Yuan De stood up from the fire almost at the same time, then ran about seven or eight steps before rolling on the ground.

The monks nearby quickly put out the fire for them.

Shen Nian couldn't help but let out a long sigh.

Today's incident has caused quite a stir, and there's a high probability that he will be punished.

But it's worth it.

If these two are forced to return in disarray by threatening self-immolation, then the plan to expropriate all temple lands in the country will likely fall through.

(End of this chapter)