Ming Dynasty Detective 1546

Chapter 324 Jiajing: We will definitely win this time!
The Jiajing Emperor and Hai Rui were locked in a fierce battle.

Every other day.

He continued to "lecture".

It took a whole month to talk about it.

Finally, after the sixteenth round, Zhu Houcong could no longer hold on and retreated back into the palace, refusing to see any more officials.

But I guess he's still not convinced, the kind of person who wakes up in the middle of the night and can't fall back asleep.

After two months of deliberation in the palace, Zhu Houcong once again requested permission to go to war.

Ever since.

Round after round.

Just as Jiajing and Hai Rui were locked in a power struggle within the palace, affairs of state were also being carried out.

The memorial from the Maritime Trade Office was decisively rejected.

However, with the shift in political direction, the focus began to shift from the emperor to the cabinet.

The situation along the southeast coast has also quietly changed.

Just like in previous dynasties, no one dared to directly cancel the maritime ban policy set by Emperor Taizu.

However, while national policies are national policies, their actual implementation must be tailored to local conditions. One can turn a blind eye to certain issues based on the actual circumstances.

Fujian was the first province to experience changes.

Along the coast of Fujian, there are many mountains and little arable land. If the people don't go to sea, they will really have no way to make a living.

Previously, the largest number of people forced into smuggling came from this area.

Therefore, Yuegang in Fujian, a remote location, was the first place to be opened up, allowing private individuals to go to sea.

There was some wariness towards foreign ships, especially those from Japan, which were absolutely not allowed.

In fact, the silver inflow mainly came from Japanese ships.

Historically, this place only became a semi-open port after the opening of trade during the Longqing era. In the following seventy years, it absorbed one-third of the world's silver and connected trade with forty-seven countries of all sizes.

While it's currently operating in a semi-concealed manner and far from reaching its full potential, it's a huge boon for coastal trade that has been pent up for so long.

Seeing that trade between Yuegang and other ports had taken shape, Zhejiang and Guangzhou followed suit, following Fujian's lead.

Even Shandong wants to get involved.

The coastal areas were involved with Japanese pirates, while the north was a battle with the Mongols.

The key to breaking up the various tribes through tribute and sowing discord lies in perseverance.

What I fear most is that the ministers who implemented the policies in the court will step down, and with their death, the policies will cease to exist, and all the efforts will be in vain.

Historically, Xia Yan and Zeng Xian had just made a good start in the conquest of the Hetao region when they were brought down by their political enemy Yan Song and even lost their lives.

Although Xia Yan's position as the second-in-command has been fraught with difficulties, the support for Zeng Xian has never wavered.

In addition, although Grand Secretary Yan Song was unwilling to reveal the core plans, he also intentionally or unintentionally pushed forward the progress at the front.

at last.

As Altan Khan's attack on Gubeikou was once again thwarted by Yu Dayou and he returned empty-handed, the Chahar tribe of the left wing of the Mongols became interested.

In fact, despite Altan Khan's current glory and his domineering presence on the grasslands, they are not the legitimate line of the Great Khan.

The legitimate ruling force was the Chahar tribe on the left wing, which, along with the Tumed tribe on the right wing where Altan Khan was located, had long been vying for Mongol hegemony. By this time, they had reached the point of stealing horses and killing each other.

You steal my horse, I'll steal yours.

I wish there were no horses on either side.

Historically, Altan Khan enhanced his prestige by allying with the Ming Dynasty and introducing Buddhism, which forced the Chahar tribe to migrate eastward to western Liaoning.

They drove the legitimate lineage of the Great Khan to a corner, leaving one faction to dominate.

Altan Khan had been driven out of the Former Tao Plain by the Ming Dynasty's vanguard, and his border raids had repeatedly failed. In addition, the Ming Dynasty sent scouts to win him over, and the young prince of the Chahar tribe, Dalai Sun, was completely tempted.

Dalaisun is not very famous in history, far less so than his son Tuman Khan. However, Tuman Khan is only five years old, while Dalaisun, who is twenty-five, is about to succeed him as the nominal Great Khan of the Mongols.

He was extremely hostile to the Ming Dynasty, but he hated the Tumed tribe even more.

He believed that it was better to give to foreign enemies than to domestic slaves. Not to mention that the possibility of the Ming army sweeping across the border was extremely low, even if they did manage to defeat the Mongol tribes and conquer the northern grasslands to restore the territory of the Tang Dynasty, it was still a pipe dream in his eyes.

In comparison, Altan Khan's rise was more powerful and posed a greater threat. Sun Quan was willing to use the power of the Ming Dynasty to eliminate this thorn in his side.

With the legitimate Mongol Khan acting as an inside agent, many things became easier, and the movements of the Tumed tribe were constantly being reported into the Great Wall.

The Ming army became increasingly familiar with the enemy's location and deployment. Not only did Altan Khan repeatedly invade the border and plunder, resulting in heavy losses for his troops, but Yu Dayou also took the initiative to attack, heading straight for the pastures and seizing horses.

This not only caused Altan Khan a great deal of trouble, but even his brother Gunbilik, who had died of a sexually transmitted disease at this time in history, was roused by the life and death of the tribe and led his troops to attack.

However, such personal changes obviously cannot stop the overwhelming trend.

Regardless of Gunbilik's provocations or Altan Khan's maneuvering, the Ming army remained steadfast, executing its own strategy.

There was no decisive battle; it was through this strategy of gradual division and erosion, day after day and year after year, that Altan Khan's rise was abruptly halted.

Now, let alone marching to the gates of Beijing and threatening to force them to pay tribute, he sent thirteen letters to the border, his words extremely humble, simply wanting to submit to the Ming Dynasty, but no one paid any attention.

We should press our advantage and pursue the fleeing enemy to the bitter end. From Zeng Xian and Yu Dayou down to the generals of all the armies, everyone is sharpening their swords, eager to cut off Altan Khan's head and please the emperor.

In fact, it was Hai Xueshi who was truly overjoyed.

Knowing all too well the immense damage that the Southern and Northern pirates had inflicted on the Ming Dynasty over the past few decades, Haiyue was naturally very pleased to see the current decline of these foreign enemies.

Grand Secretary Xia was very happy, and Grand Secretary Yan was even more satisfied.

I didn't realize it before, but now I see that without the constant suspicion and checks and balances from the person above, things are done so much more easily. The ministers are comfortable, but the emperor is undoubtedly not happy.

It has nothing to do with my understanding of the process of fighting against the southern Japanese pirates and the northern barbarians.

Instead, as the princes grew older, they were required to establish their own fiefdoms.

According to the ancestral system of the Hongwu Emperor, after a prince was granted the title of Prince, he was required to leave the capital and take up his fiefdom around the age of fifteen.

After the Chenghua era, some adjustments were made, and the postponement of some princes' appointments was delayed due to the emperor's favoritism or political reasons.

For example, Prince Jing, the fourth son of Emperor Jiajing, took up his fiefdom in the 40th year of Jiajing's reign, when he was already 25 years old.

Later, Wanli's son, Prince Fu, Zhu Changxun, was favored and wanted to be made crown prince. He also delayed taking up his post until he was twenty-five years old, when he finally took up his post in Luoyang, Henan. In the end, he was killed when Li Zicheng, the rebel leader, captured Luoyang.

The problem now is that the eldest son of the emperor, Zhu Zaiji, is approaching fifteen years old, yet he has neither the status of a crown prince nor the real power of a prince.

Due to the impact of the previous palace coup and the subsequent imprisonment, fewer officials dared to speak out, and memorials submitted to the palace were often left unread and never received.

But while the emperor can make decisions unilaterally and ignore the voices of his ministers, he cannot change the fact that his son is growing up.

It's impossible to leave a teenage boy in the palace. There are so many concubines in the harem. If someone like Zheng Chunhua were to emerge, things would get complicated.

Ever since.

Spring of the twenty-third year of the Jiajing reign.

All the princes were eventually granted the title of Prince.

The eldest son, Zhu Zaiji, was named Prince Yu;

The second son, Zhu Zaiyi, became the Prince of De.

Zhu Zaiyuan, the third son, became the Prince of Ji.

The fourth son, Zhu Zaizhen, became the Prince of Jing.

Zhu Zaishang, the fifth son, became the Prince of Ying.

On the very day the princes were conferred their titles, an imperial edict was delivered to the cabinet informing the three eldest princes that they would soon be able to establish their own residences.

Duty room.

Yan Song and Xia Yan looked at each other in bewilderment.

This is undoubtedly a huge hot potato.

The court officials hoped that the emperor would establish the eldest son of the legitimate wife and determine the position of crown prince as soon as possible, but now the eldest son of the emperor has actually been granted the title of prince.

First, leave the palace and establish your own residence in the capital. When you get a few years older, will you be sent out to live in a fiefdom?

This was clearly something the ministers did not want to see.

However, if one were to submit a petition opposing this and reignite the wave of establishing a successor, it could disrupt the current stable political situation.

After a brief silence, Xia Yan finally spoke up: "His Majesty initially used the excuse that the princes were too young and weak, but later became enraged by the palace coup and has been delaying in establishing an heir. This is shaking the foundation of the country and we must fight for it. Brother Jiexi, let's submit a petition together!"

Yan Song first thought of Yan Shifan and asked his son for advice, but after a moment's thought, he made a decision: "According to the Imperial Ancestral Instructions, if there is no legitimate heir, the eldest son shall be established. The country cannot be without a ruler for a day, nor can it be without a crown prince for a long time. This matter concerns the safety of the nation. You and I shall draft a memorial and submit it to the emperor!"

Not only the two senior ministers, but also the public was outraged after the news was leaked.

As memorials poured into the Qianqing Palace like snowflakes, Zhu Houcong glanced at them and tossed them aside.

Compared to Hai Rui, these so-called vehement remonstrances are simply child's play.

However, it was precisely because of his contest with Hai Rui that he realized that forcibly suppressing the establishment of an heir was not a long-term solution.

Moreover, this is also a great opportunity to beat Hai Rui!

"The Crown Prince of Xuanda requests an audience!"

The sound of the water clock echoed outside the palace.

After a long while, Zhu Zaiji slowly stepped into the Qianqing Palace.

The eldest prince had grown taller, and apart from the still-soft down on his lips, he was already a handsome young man.

However, there was a hint of aloofness in his brows, and his poor academic performance in the Imperial Study was even more regrettable.

"My son, please pay homage to your father!"

Zhu Houcong gazed at his eldest son, whose birth had filled him with ecstasy, a complex emotion flashing in his eyes.

Perhaps I've been overthinking things, causing the bond between father and son to grow increasingly distant...

But the distorted figure on the night of the palace coup, and the repeated praise of the Crown Prince's benevolence in the confession, even knowing that someone had instigated it, still felt like a fishbone stuck in my throat.

Zhu Houcong cleared his mind of distractions and pushed the memorials aside: "Take a look! These memorials are all about your affairs!"

Zhu Zaiji trembled, raised his hands high, and nervously accepted it.

After opening the book and reading only the beginning, he turned pale and kowtowed heavily, saying, "Your subject would rather die than do that! You wouldn't dare!"

"What are you afraid of?"

Zhu Houcong sneered: "You are the eldest son, and you have reached the age to establish your own government. It is time for you to leave my protection and build your own career. Are you not happy about that?"

Zhu Zaiji kowtowed repeatedly, his voice choked with emotion: "Your subject does not wish to leave Your Majesty... I truly do not wish to...!"

"Stop acting like a woman!"

Zhu Houcong rebuked him, saying, "Since you are my eldest son, the throne should rightfully belong to you. However, you are not yet capable of shouldering such a great responsibility, which is why I have delayed in establishing you as heir!"

He paused slightly, a half-smile playing on his lips: "Today, go to the Hanlin Academy and select a lecturer to teach in your palace. A year later, I will personally examine your scholarship! If you have made any progress, I will announce to the world that you will be made crown prince to secure the foundation of the nation!"

(End of this chapter)