I was compiling the daily records during the Wanli reign

Chapter 255 Shen Ziheng is overjoyed to have a daughter; representatives of the imperial clan arrive in the capital one after another.
The fifth day of the fourth lunar month, the fifth day after the publication of the first issue of the Ming Dynasty quarterly journal "Wanli Minjian".

The imperial court printed 10,000 copies initially.

Apart from keeping 1,000 copies in each of the two capitals, the remaining 8,000 copies were distributed via post stations to the prefectural governments, state governments, prefectural schools, and state schools in the thirteen provinces.

The official schools (provincial schools, prefectural schools, and county schools) of the two capitals and thirteen provinces all had the right to photocopy the "Wanli People's Mirror".

The imperial court required them to distribute the "Wanli People's Mirror" to villages and towns, and ordered local gentry and students from folk academies to interpret the contents of the "Wanli People's Mirror" for illiterate people.

This matter will also be included in the performance evaluation of local officials.

The national conditions and new policies in "Wanli People's Mirror" are mostly topics of concern to scholars, but the people's livelihood and folk arts involve the livelihood of the vast majority of people.

The imperial court specially commissioned a batch of new invention samples related to people's livelihood and folk arts, and sent them to various provinces to promote the productivity of the people.

At present, most people in local prefectures and counties have not yet seen the first issue of "Wanli Minjian", but the capital city is already bustling with activity because of this publication.

In the past, the new policies and national conditions of the Ming Dynasty were only vaguely understood by scholars, and even many mid- to low-level officials had no idea what the court was going to do.

This time, however, the imperial court wrote down the current state of affairs and new policies of the Ming Dynasty very clearly.

All new policies and measures are aimed at revitalizing the country.

The imperial court called on all people to participate in the new reforms.

Only by expanding the reforms of the imperial court into reforms of the entire nation can we move forward more steadily, faster, and further.

The tabloids in the capital city did not have the right to photocopy "Wanli Minjian," but they did have the right to interpret it.

Many scholars and intellectuals wrote articles analyzing the contents of "Wanli People's Mirror," praising it highly, which made many tabloids very popular and earned them a lot of money.

This "People's Guide" was a product of the court's guidance of public opinion, rather than silencing scholars as usual. This made the people feel respected by the court and also gave them a deeper understanding of the new policies.

This action was a government policy that received almost no negative feedback.

Emperor Wanli and the three Grand Secretaries were very pleased to hear the comments from the court and the public.

……

April 8th, afternoon, Hanlin Academy.

Wang Xijue, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites and a Hanlin Academician, was extremely busy.

A group of imperial clan representatives will arrive in Beijing at the end of this month. Whether his proposed three policies to limit the imperial clan (limiting the hereditary succession of stipends and titles, and allowing some members of the imperial clan to make a living independently) can be successfully implemented depends on his debate with the representatives of the imperial clan. The young Wanli Emperor can only make choices, and it is obviously impossible for him to personally participate in the debate.

Just then, Shen Nian arrived at the Hanlin Academy Hall.

"Ziheng, what is it?" Wang Xijue asked, glancing at Shen Nian.

The two worked together very well in the Hanlin Academy, and there was no need for any formalities between them.

Shen Nian said, "Scholar Wang, my wife is about to give birth, and I would like to request three days' leave during her delivery. Is that possible?"

After the implementation of the self-study examination system, it became extremely difficult for Ming Dynasty officials to request leave.

For someone like Shen Nian, after reporting to his superior, the superior still had to report to the Grand Secretariat, and then to the young Wanli Emperor. Only after the young Wanli Emperor nodded in approval could he leave his post.

Under normal circumstances, officials were not allowed to take leave when they had children at home, because official business was far more important than personal matters.

But for Shen Nian, nothing is more important than family matters.

Wang Xijue put down his brush and looked at Shen Nian with a smile.

"Ziheng, you don't need to ask for leave. His Majesty knows that you care about your family and love your wife. Yesterday, His Majesty made arrangements that you can go home directly when your wife is about to give birth, and then go back to work three days later. This is a special approval from His Majesty. If you ask for leave, it would be against the rules of the court!"

"In addition, Empress Wang has prepared the imperial physicians, midwives, and related supplies for your wife. I was planning to tell you about it tomorrow, but I didn't expect you to come here!"

Shen Nian was overjoyed upon hearing this.

Empress Wang was very fond of Shen Nian's mother and wife, and often invited them to gatherings in the inner palace. Presumably, it was because Empress Wang was enjoying the breeze by the young Wanli Emperor's bedside that he made the special arrangements.

Shen Nian understood Wanli's thoughts, and Wanli also understood Shen Nian's thoughts.

In addition, given Shen Nian's outstanding performance recently, he naturally had to give him special treatment.

This is a special imperial favor bestowed upon Shen Nian.

"Thank you, Your Majesty! Thank you, Scholar Wang!" Shen Nian said, then prepared to leave. He sensed that Wang Xijue might have something to tell him, but his mind was preoccupied with his wife's impending childbirth.

"Ziheng, stop right there!"

"The representatives of the imperial clan will be arriving in Beijing at the end of the month. I'd like you to give me some advice on how to convince them of the three strategies I've proposed."

Shen Nian thought for a moment and said, "Let's use a combination of carrot and stick. As long as Scholar Wang isn't afraid of offending people, this matter can be accomplished!"

"Haha, you're the best! You make sense, you make sense. Come on, let's work together to come up with a specific strategy. Dinner tonight is on me!" Wang Xijue said with a smile. Shen Nian's words had enlightened him.

……

On the tenth day of the fourth lunar month, in the afternoon, the weather was overcast.

Just as Shen Nian was tidying up the documents on the table, Aji rushed up to her and said: "Young Madam is about to give birth!"
Shen Nian was overjoyed, excited and nervous at the same time, and immediately took a carriage and rushed home.

His three days of personal leave were automatically activated.

……

Half an hour later, in the back hall of the Shen residence, Shen Nian paced back and forth nervously.

Little Yan Che, who is about to turn three, is full of curiosity and runs around excitedly with a small wooden stick in his hand.

The two imperial physicians and two midwives arranged by Empress Wang were all inside, and Madam Shen was making arrangements in an orderly manner.

Shen Nian frowned as she looked at the gloomy sky.

The weather was like this when Shen Yanche was born last time, with thunder even breaking out, and this time it's the same weather, with heavy rain about to fall.

At this moment, Shen Nian was quite nervous.

With the woman about to give birth, the risks are extremely high. Shen Nian has already given instructions that if any problems arise, Gu Yue'er's safety must be the top priority.

Boom! Boom!
Just then, several claps of thunder sounded, the sky grew darker, and soon, a torrential downpour began, pounding the ground.

Shen Nian, who had never believed in ghosts or gods, clasped his hands together, looked up at the sky, and murmured, "God bless, God bless! Bless Yue'er so that nothing bad happens to her, and bless her so that she can bring me a daughter this time!"

In other official families, having a son was far better than having a daughter.

But Shen Nian longed for a daughter, so that they could have a son and a daughter, making a perfect family.

In the future, after a long day at the yamen, he will be greeted by his daughter's embrace and sweet smile, instead of, like Xiao Yanche, having to ride on Shen Nian's shoulders for half an hour before climbing trees, scaling walls, and wielding wooden swords to fight...

Before long, the sound of Mother Shen instructing everyone to do things could be heard coming from the bedroom in the backyard.

This means the most crucial moment is approaching.

Shen Nian clenched her fists, becoming increasingly nervous.

About fifteen minutes later, the rain became heavier and heavier, and the sky was covered with thick, leaden clouds, making it almost impossible to see anything more than a few steps ahead.

Inside the room, candlelight shone brightly.

Shen Nian pricked up her ears and, upon hearing the sound of a baby crying, quickly rushed into the bedroom in the back hall.

Xiao Yanche followed closely behind Shen Nian. The moment Shen Nian entered the bedroom, a midwife announced loudly, "Madam is well! Congratulations on the birth of your daughter!"

After saying this, Shen Nian's face lit up with ecstasy.

He didn't pick up the baby directly. Instead, he went to Gu Yue'er first and carefully picked up his daughter after confirming that she was alright.

The two midwives standing nearby looked somewhat uncomfortable.

Because they delivered many babies, they were rewarded for giving birth to boys but not for girls. In fact, delivering too many daughters was considered unlucky.

After holding her youngest daughter and examining her closely, Shen Nian was overjoyed. She turned to Aji and said, "Aji, reward the two imperial physicians and the two midwives handsomely. My greatest wish has been to have a daughter, and now my dream has finally come true!"

Aji immediately led the imperial physician and midwife out.

"Daddy, I want to see! I want to see my little sister!" Xiao Yanche shouted, tugging at Shen Nian's clothes.

"Come on, let's look together!" Shen Nian placed her daughter in front of Gu Yue'er.

Shen's mother looked at Shen Nian's daughter, touched her little hand and said, "Little girl, your unreliable grandfather and maternal grandfather said they were supposed to return to the capital before you were born, but they haven't come back yet. When they do, I'm going to give them a good spanking!"

After Shen's mother finished speaking, Shen Nian's daughter stretched out her two little hands and reached up to grab it, which made Shen's mother, Shen Nian, and Gu Yue'er all laugh out loud.

Xiao Yanche also laughed foolishly.

Just then, the weather gradually cleared up.

The sun peeked out from behind the clouds again, illuminating the western sky with a golden glow, which was quite beautiful.

Just as Shen Nian's family was chatting and laughing, Aji ran over excitedly and shouted, "Young Master, Master and Master Gu are back!"

He just finished speaking.

Then Shen Yaoshan and Gu Dongxing walked over from outside.

The two first patted the little Yan Che who was running towards them, and then, upon seeing Shen Nian's newborn daughter, they both took something out of their arms at the same time.

Shen Yaoshan took out a gold longevity lock, while Gu Dongxing took out two gold bracelets. The two looked at Shen Nian's daughter without saying a word, but couldn't stop smiling, clearly extremely happy.

……

Just then, Aji announced that a palace eunuch had come to offer his congratulations.

Shen Nian quickly walked to the front hall.

Inside the front hall, there were two eunuchs. One of them was sent by the young Wanli Emperor to congratulate Shen Nian on the birth of her daughter. He presented her with a jade scepter made of Hetian mutton fat white jade, carved with the words "auspicious and wishful".

An eunuch, sent by Empress Wang, brought a baby swaddle made of black fox fur, a tribute item from beyond the Great Wall.

Both gifts were quite valuable.

And the gift was delivered so quickly, it was clearly prepared in advance.

This is a manifestation of sincerity.

Shen Nian quickly expressed her gratitude.

The next two days will be a happy time for Shen Nian's whole family to reunite.

……

Soon, news of Shen Nian's birth of a daughter and the double reward from the Emperor and Empress spread to the court and the common people.

Such treatment was truly unique in the current dynasty.

Officials and nobles were very envious, but they had to admit that Shen Nian deserved the young Wanli Emperor's generous treatment of him.

at the same time.

The two midwives, having been richly rewarded by Shen Nian, kept praising Shen Nian's excitement after giving birth to a daughter, which greatly increased the goodwill many women had towards Shen Nian.

……

Another day, night fell.

Inside a post station in Shanxi Province.

A royal banner bearing the character "庆" (celebration) fluttered on a carriage inside the courtyard.

There were more than thirty soldiers standing guard and patrolling inside and outside the compound.

In the bedroom on the second floor of the backyard, a middle-aged man, about fifty years old and of medium build but slightly overweight, dressed in fine clothes, sat at the table with a gloomy expression, slowly burning a letter by candlelight.

This person is Zhu Nixun, the eighth Prince Qing of the Ming Dynasty, also known as Prince Qingduan.

He was enfeoffed in Ningxia Town, one of the Nine Garrisons. In the thirty-seventh year of the Jiajing reign, he was made the heir apparent and in the fifth year of the Wanli reign, he became the Prince of Xinqing. His family had many descendants. Because he belonged to the lineage of the Taizu Emperor, he was very fond of pomp and circumstance and had a rather irritable temper.

When he was chosen as the representative of the imperial clan to go to the capital for an audience, he had a vague feeling that it was not a good thing.

Since the beginning of the Jiajing reign, the imperial court had always suppressed the imperial princes and nobles. Since the Wanli reforms, all noble classes have been exploited.

Although Zhu Nixuan passed through Shanxi, he was subject to local supervision and was still not allowed to have private contact with local officials or local princes.

However, money is omnipotent, and he managed to find out some information using it.

The letter he had just burned detailed the reasons why the court had ordered them to come to the capital.

"Limiting stipends? Restricting the hereditary succession of titles? Allowing some members of the imperial clan to make a living on their own? What kind of bullshit policy is this? They really think we imperial princes are easy to bully. This Wang Xijue is definitely not a good person! Relying on exploiting us Zhu family members to reduce expenses is truly outrageous!" Zhu Nixun couldn't help but curse.

The three strategies proposed by Wang Xijue were all written in the letter.

In Zhu Nixuan's eyes, the current court had already mistreated them.

In the past two years, the annual stipends of the imperial princes have not only decreased but have also been delayed. In addition, the land survey policy has made them the main targets of exploitation by local prefectures and governments. Their land holdings have decreased significantly, and they are now struggling to make ends meet.

If these three policies are implemented again, his descendants may become lowly farmers toiling in the fields.

This was something Zhu Nixun, who had the pure blood of Zhu Yuanzhang flowing through his veins, could not accept.

In his mind, among the two capitals and thirteen provinces of the Ming Dynasty, only the Zhu family were the masters, and everyone else was a servant.

He fell into deep thought.

At this moment, it was clearly impossible for him to contact other feudal lords.

Some princes, for their own benefit, were adept at betraying their own clansmen. In addition, local officials and secret police were always watching them. If they were accused of treason, they might be permanently confined to the capital and never be able to return.

"Your Majesty is surely planning to use Wang Xijue as a weapon to force us to agree to these three policies. In that case, I will find someone to find fault with Wang Xijue first, so that he can no longer stay in the court!"

"The cabinet has not yet made a statement, nor has His Majesty. As long as we can create a big disturbance in the capital, these three policies will definitely be abandoned. How can the Zhu family, the imperial family, act in the name of the people!" Zhu Nixuan murmured.

Currently, many officials and nobles believe that the best way to deal with officials they dislike is to find fault with them.

Whether it's a breach of personal morality, embezzlement or bribery, forming cliques in secret, negligence in official duties, or mistakes made by one's children or nephews...

With enough money and connections, you can always uncover problems if you dig deep enough; even if you can't uncover them, you can create them.

Immediately, Zhu Nixun took out a brand new sheet of paper, picked up his brush, dipped it in ink, and began to write.

Although he resides in Ningxia Town, he has secretly sent gifts to many people in the capital over the years, and now is precisely the time when he needs them.

(End of this chapter)