Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 724 Random thoughts

The midday sun slanted across the vermilion palace walls, casting a pale black shadow.

Fang Congzhe, Ye Xianggao, and Wang Yingjiao walked silently along the palace path. Behind them, the Hall of Supreme Harmony receded into the distance.

Upon reaching the Hongzheng Gate, Wang Yingjiao stopped, turned to face Fang Congzhe and Ye Xianggao, and bowed deeply, saying, "Chief Minister Fang, Second Minister Ye, I will now proceed to the Meridian Gate."

Fang Congzhe quickly returned the greeting, his face displaying his usual gentleness: "Mr. Wang, you've worked hard. After Jinqing and I returned to the Cabinet, we immediately instructed the Imperial Edict Office to draft the imperial edict. If all goes well, Mr. Wang should be able to receive the edict this afternoon and officially assume his new post."

Although Wang Yingjiao had already gained the emperor's approval, he still needed to receive an imperial edict before he could go to the Ministry of Revenue to receive the official seal and formally assume his duties. Normally, imperial edicts for high-ranking officials were drafted by the Hanlin Academy staff on duty in the Imperial Edict Office, then reviewed by the Grand Secretariat, and finally approved by the Directorate of Ceremonial. After the emperor affixed his seal, the edict was then delivered to the individual through the Ministry of Personnel or the Office of Transmission. The most crucial step in this entire process was the emperor's affixing of his seal; aside from this step that granted the edict its legitimacy, all other steps could be simplified or even omitted.

For example, the imperial edict that Yuan Keli was secretly ordered to supervise Korea was drafted by Wang An, the Grand Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial. Wang An skipped the drafting and approval process and directly affixed the seal. Finally, the emperor himself handed the edict to Yuan Keli.

Wang Yingjiao held a higher official position than Yuan Keli, but he was not special and there was no need for him to act in secret, so the emperor did not prepare an imperial edict in advance.

"Thank you for your help, Chief Minister Fang, and Vice Minister Ye." Wang Yingjiao bowed again.

“Why be so formal, Mr. Wang?” Fang Congzhe waved his hand, his smile becoming more intimate: “You are a senior who passed the imperial examination in the second year of the Wanli reign, while I am a junior who passed it in the eleventh year. In terms of age and seniority, Mr. Wang is our senior. Please address me by my courtesy name, Zhonghan.”

“Yes. Zhonghan and I took the imperial examinations in the same year. Please don’t stand on ceremony, sir. Just call me Jinqing.” Ye Xianggao was a beat behind and returned the greeting.

"I dare not, I dare not." Wang Yingjiao repeatedly cupped his hands, his face showing the proper humility: "Confucius said, 'Without propriety, one cannot stand.' The court has a system of hierarchy, with distinctions between superiors and inferiors. The Grand Secretary and the Second Grand Secretary are the pillars of the country, holding high positions and wielding great power. How dare I overstep my bounds? It is more appropriate to address them according to the court's rules."

“Within the public sphere, one should naturally follow the rules and regulations,” Fang Congzhe said, “but why be so reserved in private conversations?”

Seeing that Fang Congzhe insisted, Wang Yingjiao no longer declined: "In that case, please ask that Chief Minister Fang and Vice Minister Ye call me 'Qianfu' in private and stop calling me 'Old Gentleman'. It would be too much of an honor."

“Sir, you are quite straightforward,” Fang Congzhe asked with a smile, “but why do you still refer to yourself as ‘this humble official’?”

“Chief Minister Fang, although we have left the Emperor’s presence, look at these yellow-tiled buildings and the majestic Forbidden City. Where is this private space? Where is this place?” Wang Yingjiao said, looking around.

"That's true, that's true." Fang Congzhe agreed with a smile, but when he turned around, he suddenly noticed that there seemed to be a layer of imperceptible gloom between Ye Xianggao's brows.

After exchanging a few more pleasantries, the three of them bowed to each other and said goodbye once more.

Wang Yingjiao walked alone toward the stone bridge spanning the Inner Golden Water River between the Huangji Gate and the Meridian Gate, his scarlet robe casting a somewhat solitary shadow in the blazing sunlight. Fang Congzhe and Ye Xianggao remained on the platform, walking slowly toward the Huiji Gate along the shadows cast by the yellow tiles and red corridors.

As they reached a corner, Fang Congzhe couldn't help but turn his head to look at Ye Xianggao beside him, and asked with concern, "Jinqing, what's wrong with you? Why do you keep such a tense face? Are you feeling unwell?"

Upon hearing this, Ye Xianggao felt as if he had been pricked by a needle, and he jolted awake. He paused slightly, subconsciously glancing at Wang Yingjiao, who had already walked away. Then he looked around to make sure no one was in front of or behind him in the corridor before leaning closer to Fang Congzhe and lowering his voice to say, "Zhonghan, I... I suspect that the Embroidered Uniform Guard might be investigating me."

"What?" Fang Congzhe was taken aback at first, then his expression changed drastically. He quickly scanned his surroundings, and after confirming that it was safe, he asked in a lower, more urgent voice, "Why?!"

"I don't know," Ye Xianggao shook his head and said, "Actually, I'm not sure if the Embroidered Uniform Guard is really investigating me. I just have this feeling."

"Where do you get that feeling?" Fang Congzhe recalled, "Just now during the audience, the Emperor didn't seem to have any ill feelings towards you."

"Yes. But... oh dear!" Ye Xianggao sighed deeply, his brows furrowing even more deeply.

"What's wrong? Where did you get this feeling from?" Fang Congzhe urged in a low voice.

Ye Xianggao took a deep breath: "Zhonghan, do you still remember when the Emperor refuted me just now, saying that I had advocated 'restoring the Hongwu ancestral system and abolishing the cabinet'? I think the Emperor was giving me a warning."

Fang Congzhe thought for a moment, then frowned and asked, "You mean you were investigated by the Embroidered Uniform Guard because you submitted a secret report to the Emperor suggesting the abolition of the cabinet and the restoration of the Hongwu ancestral system? But although the suggestion was not very appropriate, bringing up the Hongwu ancestral system again is not considered a violation of the law."

"Oh dear. What are you thinking? How could I possibly accept such a accusation?" Ye Xianggao was furious, but he couldn't help but smile bitterly. "I have never accepted such a accusation. This is not a suggestion at all! This is a grumble I wrote to my late teacher, Shen Wending, more than ten years ago when I was feeling resentful and bored."

"Complaints? From over a decade ago?"

"If I remember correctly, this should have happened around the thirty-seventh year of the Wanli reign," Ye Xianggao nodded and sighed. "At that time, Li Tingji, unable to bear the attacks from the censors, claimed illness and went out to live in a temple after selling his house. I was the only one in the cabinet on duty. I really couldn't stand the situation where 'the six ministries were in power, yet not a single word was heard from each other. After submitting a memorial, there was no reply, and I only learned about it when the draft was sent.' So I vented a few complaints in my birthday letter to my late teacher."

Upon hearing these words, Fang Congzhe's expression suddenly became somewhat subtle, and he couldn't help but nod. He certainly knew the pain of serving as the sole administrator, even better than Ye Xianggao. After all, during his tenure, major events such as the Jurchen rebellion, the additional tax levied on Liaodong, the disastrous defeat at Sarhu, and the emperor's death occurred. If he had been older or had a weaker mental fortitude, it wouldn't have been impossible for him to have died in office like Chen Yubi, Zhao Zhigao, and Zhu Geng.

"And then what? What did you do after you wrote these letters?" Fang Congzhe asked.

"And then? What do you mean, 'and then'? There's no 'and then'!" Ye Xianggao shook his head repeatedly. "Although I've always kept the draft of this letter and my late master's reply with me all these years, I've never shown them to anyone! Before today, I've never even mentioned this to a second person!"

"So," Fang Congzhe slowly took a breath, "you suspect that the Embroidered Uniform Guards infiltrated your house, read these old letters, and then reported their contents to the Emperor?"

Ye Xianggao nodded heavily.

"But why is that?" Fang Congzhe stroked his beard. "Wasn't the case with the Westerners closed? Jinqing, have you gotten involved in another case?"

"How could that be! The cases involving Li Changgeng, Li Mingcheng, Wan Youfu, and Du Chengshi all happened within the last two or three years. I returned to my hometown in the forty-second year of the Wanli reign and was only summoned back last year. There's no way I could be implicated, right? Unless..." Ye Xianggao took a deep breath, "Unless it's a demonic book!"

“A demonic book.” A similar cloud quickly settled over Fang Congzhe’s brow. “You suspect that someone forged a demonic book to forcibly involve you in these recent cases. After the Emperor heard about it, he sent the Embroidered Uniform Guard to investigate secretly? They searched high and low and finally found this letter?” “I can’t think of any other possibility for the time being,” Ye Xianggao said.

The two seditious book cases during the Wanli era both revolved around the foundation of the state, namely the reigning emperor. The first case accused Emperor Shenzong of failing to establish a crown prince, while the second accused him of intending to depose the eldest son in favor of a younger one, Prince Fu. Besides the issue of the foundation of the state, the two cases shared a common thread: they involved a wide range of people, including the then-serving cabinet ministers. The second case, in particular, specifically named and attacked the then-Grand Secretary Shen Yiguan and Grand Secretary Zhu Geng.

In hindsight, the two cases involving seditious books were simply a pretext used by those with ulterior motives to attack the ruling faction led by the cabinet ministers.

This speculation silenced Fang Congzhe. He didn't reply for a moment, but simply walked slowly along the eaves.

"Jinqing." As they approached the Huiji Gate, Fang Congzhe suddenly stopped, turned to look at Ye Xianggao, and a glint of inspiration flashed in his eyes: "I've thought of another possibility!"

"What's possible?" Ye Xianggao was somewhat disoriented and failed to stop in time, almost bumping into Fang Congzhe.

"Seven years have passed since Shen Wending passed away, haven't they?" Fang Congzhe asked first.

Ye Xianggao subconsciously did some calculations. "The anniversary of Duke Wending's death is July 19th. It's been almost seven years. What's wrong?"

On the 19th day of the seventh month of the 42nd year of the Wanli reign (1613), Shen Shixing, over eighty years old, passed away peacefully in his sleep. In August, the news reached the capital. Ye Xianggao again submitted a memorial requesting to resign, which was granted. In the same month, Ye Xianggao left the capital to return to his hometown. On his way, he passed through Changzhou in Suzhou and wrote the "Epitaph of Shen Gong, Grand Master of the Palace, Left Pillar of State, Junior Tutor, Grand Tutor of the Crown Prince, Minister of Personnel, Grand Secretary of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, posthumously granted the title of Grand Tutor and the posthumous name of Wending".

“Jinqing,” Fang Congzhe speculated, “I think this matter is probably not as complicated as you think. The contents of that letter could very well have been leaked from the Shen family.”

"Shen Jingzhong of the Shen family has no reason to do this, right? Why would he want to harm me?" Ye Xianggao subconsciously thought the worst, but instinctively didn't believe it.

“I never said anyone wanted to harm you,” Fang Congzhe quickly shook his head.

"So what do you mean?" Ye Xianggao still couldn't understand.

Fang Congzhe explained: "Seven years after the death of Duke Wending, Shen Jingzhong was repeatedly impeached and had not served as an official for a long time. It was entirely possible that during this period, he would have compiled and published Duke Wending's letters and articles.

"You mean that the letter I wrote happened to be included in the collection of Duke Wending by Shen Jingzhong? After the collection was leaked, it was bought by someone in the palace and presented to the emperor?" Ye Xianggao's pupils shrank, as if a ray of light pierced through the heavy gloom in his eyes.

"I haven't heard of any 'demonic books' appearing recently, and I don't think the Emperor would send the Imperial Guards to your house to steal a letter that doesn't violate any taboos. Besides, when you asked for advice today, the Emperor offered you a seat and a bowl of soup. There wasn't a hint of neglect, suspicion, or warning." Fang Congzhe patted Ye Xianggao's shoulder with a smile. "As the saying goes, a righteous person casts a righteous shadow, and an evil person casts an evil shadow. As long as you have a clear conscience, there's nothing to be afraid of."

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"A clear conscience? You think you have a clear conscience?!" In a small courtyard outside Yongdingmen Gate, Wu Yunqian, the Korean envoy who had recently settled down, slammed his fist on the table, his face flushed red. "How dare you say such a thing!"

"I acted according to my conscience, and of course I have a clear conscience." Li Qingquan leaned back on the armrest of his armchair, his eyes staring blankly at the muddy ground beneath his feet.

"What true intention?" Wu Yunqian glared at Li Qingquan, his eyes seemingly spitting fire. "Is your true intention to kill us all?!"

"It's alright." Li Qingquan raised his head and smiled at Wu Yunqian. "I will take full responsibility for my actions and will never involve you."

“We’re already involved!” Li Qingquan’s intention was to comfort him, but to Wu Yunqian, who couldn’t contain his anger, the smile seemed more like mockery, or even provocation. “Where do you think we are right now? Why do you think the Embroidered Uniform Guard would bring us to a place like this! What exactly did you submit yesterday!?”

“It’s better if you don’t know,” Li Qingquan said. “That way, if they ask, you can insist that you know nothing.”

"Ha!" Wu Yunqian laughed in exasperation at Li Qingquan. "Them? Who! The Embroidered Uniform Guard? Even if I could distance myself from them, what good would it do? Aren't we going back to China?"

Li Qingquan was visibly shaken.

"Just tell me!" Wu Yunqian took two steps up to Li Qingquan and pressed down on his shoulder. "Who are you trying to drag down with you by writing that? Li Erzhan? Zheng Renhong? Or someone else?"

Li Qingquan turned his head away. "Why would you think that?"

"I don't know what you wrote, but I'm not stupid!" Wu Yunqian roared, spitting as he spoke, his words landing on Li Qingquan's face. "You pulled this stunt behind my back just to use this opportunity to settle personal scores! Tell me, who exactly did you name?"

Li Qingquan remained silent for a long while before finally uttering three words: "Just one person."

"So it really is Li Erzhan?" Wu Yunqian's expression seemed to soften a bit.

“No. Suing Li Erzhan is useless. The Celestial Empire won’t do anything to him because of what he did in the country.” Li Qingquan finally met Wu Yunqian’s gaze for the first time.

"Then who did you sue?" Wu Yunqian's expression turned serious once again.

"You already guessed it, didn't you?" Li Qingquan asked with a smile.

"He's already crippled, what's the point of kicking him while he's down?"

“He was deposed, but his son is to continue being king,” Li Qingquan said calmly. “I don’t think that’s right.”

(End of this chapter)