The Wanli Emperor of the Ming Dynasty was extremely rebellious

Chapter 653 Loyalty to the Country
The great Ming Dynasty war god Qi Jiguang died.

Emperor Wanli's hands trembled as he held the urgent report, and his face was filled with grief.

Memories flooded his mind, and tears welled up in his eyes.

What would have happened if Qi Jiguang hadn't existed?
When imperial power was in jeopardy, he was merely a puppet subject to all forms of bullying.

Empress Dowager Li bullied him, Feng Bao bullied him, and those scheming civil officials also bullied him.

At that time, he had no power whatsoever, and there wasn't even a single person he could rely on in the palace.

If it weren't for Qi Jiguang leading his troops into the palace to protect him, he would have had no hope of turning his life around.

If it weren't for Qi Jiguang helping him control the military, he would never have been able to suppress those scheming civil officials by force.

When the three powerful clans of Puzhou colluded with the northern barbarians to invade the border, it was Qi Jiguang who risked his life and led thousands of troops to aid Gubeikou, fighting a bloody battle against tens of thousands of local barbarians, thus preserving the foundation he had painstakingly built.

Later, Qi Jiguang helped him train the Beijing garrison and improve its military strength; he helped him preside over the military examinations and select military generals; and he helped him conquer the northern barbarians and quell rebellions.

Only then did he recover the Hetao region and the Beiping Commandery, gradually laying the foundation for a prosperous era.

Later, when Japanese pirates invaded Korea, Qi Jiguang again risked his life to lead his troops to provide support.

Then came the war of annihilation to wipe out the Japanese pirates, and once again Qi Jiguang led his troops to the front.

Later, when the Jurchens were besieged, it was Qi Jiguang who was stationed in the extremely cold Nurgan Commandery to help him deploy troops and investigate the enemy's situation.

At that time, he was a little worried that Qi Jiguang was too old to lead troops into battle.

Qi Jiguang, however, insisted on fighting for his country.

Later, Qi Jiguang personally led his army to conquer the Americas, which secured vast territories and countless gold, silver, and copper mines for him, thus laying the foundation for the Ming Dynasty's golden age.

In this campaign against the Oirat Mongols, Qi Jiguang once again personally led his army into the northern desert and completely wiped out the Oirat Er'e tribe.

He should have considered Qi Jiguang's age issue long ago.

This old general is over seventy years old.

He really shouldn't have left it to spend the winter in the frigid far north.

If this had happened in Beijing, catching a cold wouldn't have been fatal for the old general.

He truly regrets it.

As he thought about it, tears streamed down his face.

Upon seeing this, Xiao Zhu Changxun was so frightened that he cried out, "Father, what's wrong? What happened? Don't frighten me!"

Emperor Wanli was deeply grieved and speechless.

He could only hand over the urgent report with trembling hands.

Upon seeing this, Xiao Zhu and Chang Xun were both greatly alarmed.

Grand Marshal Qi Jiguang contracted a cold and died!
The Great War God of the Ming Dynasty has passed away!
How can this be good?

He didn't know what to do.

At this moment, he couldn't help but look up at Song Yingxing, who was both his teacher and friend.

Song Yingxing was also startled.

Why was His Majesty in tears?
In his memory, His Majesty was exceptionally strong; he had never seen His Majesty shed a single tear, let alone be moved to tears.

Why was His Majesty so grief-stricken this time?
He couldn't help but look at the urgent report in Xiao Zhu Changxun's hand.

Upon seeing this, Xiao Zhu Changxun quickly handed over the urgent report.

When Song Yingxing took the urgent report and read it, his expression changed drastically.

Qi Jiguang, the great war god of the Ming Dynasty, has passed away!

He practically grew up listening to stories of the Great Ming Dynasty's war god.

This war god was already a peerless general during the Jiajing reign.

Even before he was born, the name of this war god had already resounded throughout the entire Ming Dynasty.

Even before he could read and write, he often heard his father tell stories about this war god.

The first official gazette he read described this war god, and at that time, the gazette describing the war god was already circulating among the people.

With a war god, the Ming Dynasty is destined for prosperity!

This has long been circulating among the people.

Now, this god of war has passed away!

No wonder His Majesty was so grieved.

He was stunned for a long time before cautiously saying, "Your Majesty, please accept my condolences. I dare to ask, now that General Qi has passed away, shouldn't we start thinking about what will happen to him after his death?" Yes, Qi Jiguang is gone, and no amount of grief can bring him back.

I should seriously consider the arrangements for this great contributor after his death.

He wasn't very familiar with this kind of thing; it seemed that the Ministry of Rites was specifically in charge of this.

Emperor Wanli raised his hand to wipe away his tears, then said in a hoarse voice, "Summon Wu Daonan, the Minister of Rites."

Not long after, Wu Daonan, the Minister of Rites, strode in.

He was startled when he saw Wanli's grief-stricken expression.

What's going on here?
After the emperor and his minister exchanged greetings, Wanli immediately sent over the urgent report.

When Wu Daonan received the urgent report, he was horrified and his face paled upon reading it.

Grand Marshal Qi Jiguang has passed away!
Wanli then said solemnly, "I want to hold the most solemn funeral rites for Yuanjing. Huifu, tell me, what would be the most solemn?"

This one.

Wu Daonan thought for a moment, then said cautiously, "Your Majesty, when a high-ranking official of the court passes away, it is already considered a great honor if you can send a eunuch from the Directorate of Ceremonial to manage the funeral."

If you want to make it even more grand, then send an official from the Ministry of Rites to manage the funeral; the higher the official's rank, the more grand the funeral.

"Your Majesty, how about I preside over Marshal Qi's funeral?"

Is your position high-ranking?
Wanli shook his head slightly and said, "No, I want the most grand ceremony, the grandest ever. In terms of position, who can compare with me?"

"I will personally oversee Yuan Jing's funeral. Tell me, what should be done about it?"

what?
You should personally host it!

This is truly an unprecedented grand occasion.

However, you don't know how to handle funeral arrangements, so it seems I'll have to take care of it.

Wu Daonan thought for a moment, then carefully said, "Your Majesty, if it is a funeral for the government, then we must first grant silver and sacrificial items to determine the scale of the ceremony."

What was the scale of the sacrificial ceremony?
Upon hearing this, Wanli pondered and said, "The larger the scale of the sacrificial ceremony, the better. The sacrificial items must be the best. How much silver should be given?"

You've bestowed this upon so many court officials, don't you remember this one?
Wu Daonan said cautiously, "The amount of silver bestowed depends on His Majesty's will, but it is usually several hundred taels and will not exceed a thousand taels."

What do you think I mean?
What can you do with a few hundred taels of silver?
After thinking for a moment, Wanli decisively said, "Then let's first bestow gold, silver and copper coins worth one million taels. If that's not enough, we'll discuss it further."

Besides money and offerings, what else was there?

Uh, isn't one million taels enough?
Wu Daonan quickly continued, "After bestowing silver and sacrificial offerings, the next step is to bestow altars. The maximum number of altars bestowed is nine. The Ministry of Rites can bestow nine altars on behalf of the court, and His Majesty can also add nine more."

Nine is the ultimate.

Wanli nodded without hesitation and said, "Then bestow nine altars upon them all. Are there any more?"

Wu Daonan thought for a moment, then continued, "Next is to supervise the construction of the mausoleum, which can also be funded by the imperial court."

Those whose achievements are exceptionally great may have a shrine built for martyrs, and be granted imperial plaques and couplets.

Yes, Wang Chongguang has a shrine dedicated to martyrs, and the late Emperor Jiajing even bestowed upon him a plaque and couplets.

Upon hearing this, Emperor Wanli slowly nodded and said, "I will pay for the construction of this mausoleum. I will first bestow upon you gold, silver, and copper coins worth one million taels of silver. If that's not enough, we'll discuss it further."

The Martyrs' Shrine must be built, and it must be the best one. We will first bestow upon them gold, silver, and copper coins worth one million taels of silver, and then we will discuss other matters if necessary.

As for the plaque and couplets, I will write them now. Bring me brush, ink, paper, and inkstone.

He had writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones on his desk, but they were all small pieces of paper and brushes, with little ink and a small inkstone, so they were not suitable for writing large characters on plaques and couplets.

Soon, Li Xuancheng personally brought in his special writing implements.

Emperor Wanli personally unfurled the large sheet of paper for the seal plaque, took a deep breath, then picked up a large brush, dipped it in ink, gathered his strength, and wrote four large characters: "Serve the country with utmost loyalty."

Immediately afterwards, he picked up his small brush and wrote eight small characters side by side at the end of the signature: "Bestowed by Emperor Wanli, Zhu Yijun".

This is already the highest standard. Generally, it is considered good if the emperor uses the reign title instead of the given name when bestowing a plaque. It is rare for an emperor to inscribe his own name on the plaque he bestows.

After he finished writing, he personally picked up the imperial seal and stamped it on the signature.

This is the most formal way of bestowing a title.

After the characters on the plaque are written, they still need to be made into a rubbing and transferred onto the actual plaque.

Li Xuancheng quickly picked up the written characters, blew on them, and then handed them to the eunuch to make a copy.

Wanli then unfolded the paper for writing couplets, and with a burst of energy, penned the most extravagant couplet ever.

Invincible War God of the Ming Dynasty
The greatest hero of all time
Wu Daonan was dumbfounded when he saw this.

This is truly an unprecedented evaluation.

(End of this chapter)