Ming Dynasty Detective 1546

Chapter 306 The Iron-Faced Censor Hai Rui, and Xu Jie, Who Practiced What He Practitioned
Since May of the twentieth year of the Jiajing reign.

Emperor Zhu Houcong officially retreated to the inner palace and ceased attending court.

Important military and national affairs are discussed jointly by the cabinet and its ministers.

The cabinet remains unchanged, with Yan Song as the chief minister and Xia Yan as the second minister.

Among the officials, Hai Yue, who was originally a lecturer and later promoted to Hanlin Academician and in charge of the Hanlin Academy, was the leader.

The emperor did not hold court assemblies, but still valued lecturing. As the only official who could meet the emperor as a scholar, his opinions carried great weight.

Thus, they became the three major figures in the imperial court.

All affairs of the six ministries were under his control.

However, the political views of these three individuals are not exactly close, but rather diametrically opposed.

Grand Secretary Yan Song's goal was very clear.

The Battle of Hetao was not over. Anda's tribe withdrew from the Hetao Plain ahead of schedule, preserving the tribe's elite forces and possessing tens of thousands of elite cavalry.

The conflict between the Ming Dynasty and the forces of the Mongolian steppe was not over.

Expelling the Tartars was of greater significance than recovering Jiaozhi.

Therefore, Grand Secretary Yan proposed to press on and send troops beyond the Great Wall to defeat the Tumed tribe in one fell swoop and secure twenty years of peace on the border.

Second Grand Secretary Xia Yan firmly opposed it.

Taking the initiative and driving away people from the Hetao region are two completely different concepts.

To launch an attack beyond the Great Wall, cavalry is the first thing needed.

The cavalry advantage that the Ming Dynasty relied on in the early period was severely weakened after the Tumu Crisis. The border troops were short of more than half of their horses, and the actual strength of the Jizhou cavalry was less than 30% of what was on paper.

Historically, when Qi Jiguang defended Jizhou, he mainly relied on wagon camps and firearms for defense, and his ability to pursue enemies in open field battles was extremely limited. Even he could not train cavalry, which was truly a case of a skilled cook not being able to cook without rice.

The Ming Dynasty's top leadership was well aware of this, and after the reigns of Emperors Renzong and Xuanzong, they abandoned Zhu Di's offensive strategy of five expeditions to the northern deserts. The nine border defense lines were contracted to the Great Wall. At this time, it would be too optimistic to risk going beyond the Great Wall again.

Therefore, Xia Yan accepted the suggestion of Zeng Xian, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of War, to adopt a policy of division against the Mongol tribes, to win over the Mongol tribes other than the Tumed tribe, and to unite these small tribes to limit Anda's development.

This comes with prerequisites.

The conquest of Annam proved that the Ming Dynasty's military strength was now far superior to what it used to be, and the move by Anda's tribe to voluntarily withdraw from the Hetao Plain further proved the success of the Ming Dynasty's five-year campaign to conquer the Hetao region.

Anda's decisive withdrawal was undoubtedly a correct tactic, demonstrating his deep understanding of the principle that "if you save the land but lose the people, you will lose both; if you save the people but lose the land, you will gain both."

But to the other Mongols who couldn't see the bigger picture, this was a sign of cowardice and weakness.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, we can leverage the Ming Dynasty's tributary system and use the lure of iron pots to incite the already fragmented Mongol tribes to fight amongst themselves.

Both sides held their own views, but far more court officials agreed with the strategy of dividing and conquering than those who advocated leaving the capital.

Even Mao Bowen, the Minister of War and a close confidant of Yan Song, favored Zeng Xian's proposal.

The key is.

It is said that Zeng Xian, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of War, initially advised Yan Song, but was rejected, so he turned to Xia Yan instead.

Some people ridiculed Yan Song, saying he was senile and just like his incompetent son, pushing such a capable minister to the opposing camp.

While the two Grand Secretaries were arguing fiercely about the border regions, Haiyue's focus was on the Japanese pirates in the south.

In just one or two years.

The attacks by Japanese pirates along the Zhejiang coast became more and more frequent, and the number of pirates in each group also grew larger and larger.

The actual Japanese pirates did not constitute such a large force; the coastal people and merchants voluntarily joined the bandits.

It's pointless to dwell on the fact that these people were forced into this situation by the maritime ban, leaving them with no means of livelihood.

Whenever the Japanese pirates landed, they would burn, kill, and loot, committing all sorts of atrocities. They had to be wiped out completely!

Only in this way can the economic order of the southeastern coast of the Ming Dynasty be ensured, and trade routes be prevented from being blocked, people's livelihoods be ruined, and the collection of taxes by the imperial court be affected.

Money is of utmost importance.

The reason why things are not like in the Ming Dynasty, where a group of high-ranking officials in the Western Garden argued heatedly over a few million taels of silver, and went to Zhejiang to implement the "conversion of rice paddies to mulberry fields" policy, is precisely because the national treasury is gradually becoming full under the implementation of the new policies.

Zhu Houcong's advantage of not practicing Taoism became apparent; this old man saved a lot of money.

However, if chaos breaks out in the southeast, tax revenue will be hindered, and not only will the strategic advantage be lost, but the Hetao region may also be lost again.

Therefore, Haiyue's focus is on the southeast.

A comprehensive approach was adopted, encompassing military, economic, and political aspects.

He took the Japanese pirate raids seriously, but he could not gain the approval of Yan Song and Xia Yan.

"Anda's 100,000 archers are sharpening their swords, and as for those Japanese pirates who plunder merchant ships? They're nothing but a minor ailment!"

"Once the royal army has trampled through the Khan's camp, we can then send Yu Dayou south. In just ten months, we can wipe out the Khan's territory!"

"I cannot agree with what the two Grand Secretaries have said!"

Haiyue argued forcefully, even emphasizing Southeastern affairs when lecturing the Emperor. This blatantly smuggling in personal agendas infuriated Yan Song and Xia Yan, who also submitted a memorial impeaching him.

The two sides fought fiercely, exchanging blows back and forth.

Such a huge disagreement also drew the attention of the court officials.

Just when everyone thought that Hai Yue, as a young and promising person, was ultimately not as well-established as Yan Song and Xia Yan, and would inevitably have to give in.

However, they were surprised to find that, while the conflict in the north was still only on paper, the strategy to quell the Japanese pirates was already being implemented smoothly.

only because.

The Yixin Society was led by Hai Rui, Xu Jie, Hu Zongxian, and Zhao Zhenji.

It has already occupied a pivotal position in the southeast region.

Hai Rui had previously served as an inspector in Zhejiang and Southern Zhili, impeaching and dismissing more than 500 corrupt officials in the two places. He was known as the "Iron-Faced Censor" at the time. Later, he repeatedly submitted reports on the Japanese pirates and was ordered to reorganize the local troops in Zhejiang.

Given his background as a probationary official in the Hanlin Academy, his voluntary appointment to a local post, and his remarkable achievements, he could have easily been promoted directly to the head of the Three Departments and given the title of Right Vice Censor-in-Chief, thus becoming a local governor.

Although he still lacked some seniority, Hai Rui still tirelessly traveled to every prefecture and county in Zhejiang, and even went deep into military camps to personally inspect military preparations and combat conditions.

In response to the long-standing problems of lax discipline and weak disorganization among the Ming soldiers in his jurisdiction, he vigorously rectified the situation by using strict rewards and punishments. Through three years of hard work, the military appearance and discipline of the Zhejiang soldiers improved significantly, and their morale gradually recovered.

With such a poor foundation, it's unrealistic to expect any dramatic changes; this is already quite difficult.

Today, Hai Rui's prestige in Zhejiang is no less than that of Hu Zongxian, who was the first governor of Zhejiang in history.

Oh, in this life, Hu Zongxian passed the imperial examination but failed to enter the Hanlin Academy. He first served in the Ministry of War, then became a supervising secretary of the Ministry of War, and now serves as the censor of Zhejiang Province, under the command of Hai Rui and awaiting orders.

Corresponding to this group are Xu Jie and Zhao Zhenji.

Xu Jie was the most politically senior among the elders of the Yixin Society.

He was the third-ranked scholar in the imperial examination in the second year of the Jiajing reign. Even though he offended Zhang Cong and was demoted, his passion turned into forbearance and conservatism. Due to his outstanding political ability, he was promoted to the position of Chancellor of the Imperial Academy in the twenty-first year of the Jiajing reign and to the position of Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites in the twenty-second year of the Jiajing reign.

In other words, in these two years, he would follow the path of Yan Song in the past, first becoming the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy and then the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, becoming a high-ranking official of the third rank in the imperial court.

Now that his previous demotions were no longer a factor, Xu Jie started as a Left Councilor of the Shandong Provincial Administration Commission when he was transferred from the Hanlin Academy to a local post. Later, he was promoted to Provincial Surveillance Commissioner due to his achievements in water management.

A provincial inspector under the age of forty, with such local experience, and further promotion from the central government, his future is truly limitless.

However, just as Hai Rui was inspecting Southern Zhili and was about to arrest corrupt officials, the man implicated the Xu family of Songjiang. The Xu family members went north to plead with Xu Jie, crying and complaining that Hai Rui had listened to slander and arrested the Xu family members, which aroused public resentment in the area.

Xu Jie did not believe one side of the story, but took the initiative to consult with the Censorate. The Censorate then dispatched two imperial inspectors to jointly investigate the case.

In the end, Hai Rui was exonerated, those who slandered him were severely punished and exiled to the frontier, and Xu Jie's reputation for upholding justice even against his own family spread, but he was also criticized.

In ancient times, not showing favoritism towards relatives was indeed respected, but it was also criticized, especially in rural areas with strong clan traditions, where interdependence was the norm. If you condemned a member of your own clan out of passion, wouldn't that be disheartening?

Xu Jie was also confused about this until Hai Yue wrote him a letter and shared her understanding of the philosophy of mind, which made him more determined.

There is nothing outside the mind, and there is no principle outside the mind.

Pursue your conscience and act accordingly.

This, ironically, strengthened my resolve to eradicate the corrupt practices in Southern Zhili.

Xu Jie was from Huating County, Songjiang Prefecture, Southern Zhili Province. Due to the province's avoidance system, he was not allowed to serve as an official in Southern Zhili Province in principle.

However, special appointments to central government positions, such as those of governors and viceroys, are not subject to the avoidance restriction.

Xu Jie, now holding the title of Right Vice Censor-in-Chief, is appointed Governor of Yingtian and stationed in Nanjing. Zhao Zhenji is his deputy, overseeing the defense against Japanese pirates in Southern Zhili.

Besides these four outstanding historical officials, members of the Yixin Society, including Tang Shunzhi, Su Zhigao, and Gui Zai, all went to serve in the southeast.

Because Yixin Hui had made early arrangements for local implementation, even if Haiyue failed to pass the grand strategy at the central government level, it did not hinder its implementation at the local level.

"Brother Mingwei is truly remarkable. He can already stand on equal footing with the two Grand Secretaries. When he enters the cabinet in the future, who will be able to stop him?"

On this day, Sun Weixian came to visit. After tea was served and we sat down, he sighed sincerely and then said, "Lu Bing is coming back. My time as the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard is coming to an end!"

Since Yan Song launched the massive prison purge that year, and the imperial prison was once again filled with prisoners, the Embroidered Uniform Guard has risen to prominence again, and has been quite powerful in recent years.

However, Sun Weixian was ultimately not a confidant of the current emperor.

Just as there is a successor for the prime minister, when Lu Bing was about to return from the front line in Hetao, he knew that if he knew what was good for him, it would be time to step down and give way to a more capable person.

He was now completely convinced of Haiyue's status and methods, and he was not being ambiguous during his visit. He said in a low voice, "I have two important matters to discuss with you in person."

"Speaking!"

Sun Weixian took a deep breath: "Firstly, the commanders of the Seventh Division of the Embroidered Uniform Guard have been drawing on several batches of elite troops in recent years, and the missions they have carried out are unknown even to me, the commander."

Haiyue raised her eyebrows and nodded slightly.

"Second..."

Sun Weixian leaned forward, a short sentence escaping his lips before quickly pursing them: "There's been progress on Jianwen's secret treasure!"

(End of this chapter)