Ming Dynasty entry: I am Chongzhen, the greatest emperor of all time!

Chapter 117 The Great Court Meeting

"Your Majesty, are you not going to investigate further?" Huang Degong asked, following behind Zhu Youjian.

Zhu Youjian shook his head, "No need."

There was no need to ask any further questions. His main purpose in coming here was to see if the people knew the policies of the imperial court and whether anyone had tampered with the imperial decrees.

So far, everything has been executed very well.

Although the old man's family was poor, they had a real fifty mu of land. They paid for the grain on a one-to-one basis. Although renting out an ox would mean losing 15% of their harvest, it was still much better than the previous heavy rent and taxes.

The hope in the old man's eyes was genuine.

Since that's the case, there's no need for him to investigate further.

With the surrender of various Mongol tribes, the widespread use of oxen for plowing is only a matter of time.

With the northern threat temporarily eliminated, Dorgon will not be able to march south for three years, and Li Zicheng is no longer a threat. During this time, Zhu Youjian has enough time to do whatever he wants.

There's also a Jiangnan animal waiting to be slaughtered.

Based on the silver reserves of Jiangnan, we will develop the navy and modern industry, and then seize the silver mines of the Japanese pirates, the American silver mines, and the Australian silver mines...

Zhu Youjian even dared to rename the Earth "Mingqiu"!
Of course, this is just wishful thinking.

Surrounded by numerous guards, both overt and covert, they returned to the central command tent.

Zhu Youjian ignored everyone and buried himself in his work at his desk, studying the specific details of the court's reforms.

……

On May 29th, outside Deshengmen in Beijing, yellow earth was used to pave the road and water was sprinkled on the streets. Shops along the route from Chaoyangmen to Zhengyangmen hung yellow silk banners.

At 7:45 AM, the cavalry of the Five Armies' outpost appeared at the end of the official road as the morning dew fell, and nine cannon salutes shook the moat, causing ripples to spread.

"They're here! They're here!" The clerk on the Zhengyangmen Arrow Tower shouted at the top of his lungs, and ninety-nine dragon flags on the city wall unfurled in response.

Ni Yuanlu stood before the barbican in a purple robe and jade belt, with the six ministers behind him in blood-red robes, and behind them, a large group of officials from the capital kneeling for half the street.

Further away, a crowd surged, and several children, clinging to the branches of a locust tree, were suddenly startled by the deafening shouts of "Long live the Emperor!" and fell to their deaths.

Logically, Ni Yuanlu and other officials from the capital should have led the entire city's population twenty li outside the city to welcome them.

But that was the treatment given to those who returned in triumph, those who returned victorious.

Zhu Youjian did not consider this a triumphant return.

It's at best a draw.

It is too early to declare victory now, and his actions will determine the attitude of the world.

If he returns victorious, the momentum we've built up will dissipate.

Therefore, he specifically requested that the ceremony not be arranged as a triumphant return, but rather that the army simply return to the capital for rest and recuperation as normal.

But he was the emperor, and even if he went out of the city to hunt, he would still be greeted by the entire city when he returned to the capital.

Zhu Youjian, still in his golden armor, rode his horse to within a hundred paces of the barbican.

The mirror reflected the plaque on the city tower. Suddenly, an old woman kneeling by the roadside held up a wooden sign with the words "Divide the land to survive" written on it. The mottled ink seeped into the pine wood grain.

He pulled on the reins, and as the warhorse reared up, the gold-inlaid stirrups clanged against the armor plates.

"Your Majesty, may you be well..." Ni Yuanlu led his men in three bows and nine kowtows, his aged voice echoing in the passageway of the barbican, "Your subjects respectfully welcome Your Majesty's return. This battle has defeated the enemy and pacified the bandits, an achievement comparable to that of Emperor Taizu and Emperor Chengzu!"

Zhu Youjian dismounted, and when he handed the gilded helmet to Wang Chengen, the red tassel hanging down his forehead was still trembling slightly.

He caught a glimpse of the gold-edged congratulatory letter peeking out from the sleeve of the Minister of Rites, and suddenly recalled a scene from Chongzhen's memory. It was the grand court session on the winter solstice of the twelfth year of Chongzhen's reign. At that time, the war report from Liaodong had just arrived, and all the officials in their robes knelt in the snow, not daring to raise their heads.

"Minister Ni, rise." He gestured for him to rise, his fingertips brushing against the peacock pattern on the Prime Minister's official robe. "This battle is not over yet; it is merely a temporary stalemate. The subsequent battles will require the full support of all of you. I will lead you to achieve unparalleled success!"

"Issue an order for the three armies to set up camp outside the city, and for the Ministry of War to immediately allocate wine and meat as a reward."

As the imperial carriage passed through Zhengyang Gate, the Shuntian Prefect, who was kneeling by the roadside, suddenly shouted, "Your Majesty's distribution of land to the people is a meritorious act!"

Instantly, the whole street echoed the sentiment. Several imperial students, holding the "Memorial on Equal Land Distribution," tried to present it to the emperor, but were gently pushed aside by the Imperial Guards with cotton-wrapped canes.

Looking through the beaded curtain, Zhu Youjian saw that the arrowheads from Li Zicheng's attack on the city were still embedded in the cracks between the bricks of Xijiangmi Lane, but now they were gleaming from being trampled by countless straw sandals.

As he was engrossed in watching, an old farmer with white hair suddenly darted out from the roadside, carrying a rough earthenware bowl filled with steamed millet cakes made from newly harvested wheat flour. "Your Majesty, have a bite of my family's!" he exclaimed.

Before he could finish speaking, he was pinned down by the Imperial Guards, and the millet cake rolled down beside his golden armor knee pads and broke into three pieces.

The old farmer struggled to lift his head, his murky tears falling onto the loose soil of the imperial road. "On the day the Emperor went to war, the county magistrate ordered the offering of a longevity tablet, and that's what I was thinking..."

"Let go." Zhu Youjian dismissed the guards, stepped down from the palanquin, first helped the old farmer up, and smiled kindly, "Old man, you are quite old, I should have gone to see you first."

Then he bent down to pick up the dusty millet cake and broke it into several pieces.

Amid the eager gazes of the surrounding crowd, Zhu Youjian waved his hand and scattered millet cakes into the air.

"I have said that as long as I have food to eat, I will never forget the people!"

"I will share this cake with everyone!"

The onlookers, along with officials and nobles, all stood frozen in place.

The most shocked person was Ni Yuanlu, who was standing next to Zhu Youjian.

That's incredibly effective at winning over the people!

Looking at Zhu Youjian's serious expression, there was no sign that he was acting.

Sensing Ni Yuanlu's gaze, Zhu Youjian smiled and handed the last piece of food to Ni Yuanlu.

"Prime Minister, if I have food, the people will have food; if the people have food, the officials will have food. This piece is specially reserved for you, Prime Minister. Eat it quickly."

Ni Yuanlu took the millet cake blankly, and tears almost welled up in her eyes.

That's such a great actress!!!

He completely immersed himself in the role!

Ni Yuanlu had never seen or heard of such an emperor before.

He can put the people and his ministers before himself, even if only in words.

For just this one millet cake, Ni Yuanlu was willing to give up his life!
To cover up his embarrassment, he quickly reached out and stuffed the millet cake into his mouth.

As the aroma of wheat mingled with the sweetness of acacia honey spread across the tongue, a deafening burst of firecrackers suddenly erupted in the distance. It turned out that tea merchants from Xuanwu Gate had tied thirty strings of Liuyang firecrackers to a bamboo frame and set them off, the smoke making the soldiers guarding the city walls rub their eyes.

As the dragon banner held high by the flag bearers of the Fifth Army Battalion turned past the barbican, a roar like a tidal wave erupted from the crowd.

Several children wrapped in tattered coats were pushed to the edge of the imperial road. Just as the embroidered spring knife sheath was about to block them, Zhu Youjian waved to them.

The boldest boy was carried by the Imperial Guards to the side of the jade carriage. His dirty fingers barely touched the gilded wooden shaft before he withdrew, leaving five gray marks on his patched trousers.

"Your Majesty's armor is so shiny!" The child pointed to the breastplate on Zhu Youjian's chest. The mirror reflected a sky full of kites—hundreds of kites flown by students of the Imperial Academy, each tail feather inscribed with the words "Peace throughout the world."

Suddenly, a gust of east wind swept by, and the kite with its string snapped plunged into the moat, the splashing water startling the white horse pulling the carriage so much that it reared up.

Amber-colored liquid splashed down from the second floor of a tavern along the street. Huang Degong instinctively reached for his sword, but then he smelled a rich aroma of wine. It turned out that the owner of Zuixianlou was pouring ten-year-old wine into a golden cup and shouting, "A toast to the royal army, a toast to the fallen soldiers!"

Further away, the sound of washing clothes erupted in waves. The women had even moved their chopping boards to the side of the street, and the sound of clappers echoed the triumphant drumbeats.

The most eye-catching was Butcher Hu, who sold meat at the Xizhimen market. On his greasy chopping board was a statue of Guan Yu, and two freshly slaughtered fat pigs were adorned with red ribbons. As the imperial carriage passed by, this rough man suddenly opened his throat and roared out a Qinqiang opera, "Three cannon shots outside the gate sounded like thunder!" The off-key lyrics startled the Ministry of Rites' master of ceremonies, who almost dropped his ceremonial tablet.

The noisiest place was under the archway of the Imperial College, where hundreds of students copied the "Memorial on Pacifying the Barbarians" onto a sheet of Xuan paper over ten feet long. Amid the surging crowd, someone stepped on someone's cloud-patterned shoes.

Suddenly, a madman took off his wine gourd from his waist, splashed ink, and painted a picture of a battle beyond the Great Wall next to the four characters "Your Majesty is Divine and Martial." With a sweep of his wolf-hair brush, he depicted Dorgon as a cowardly raccoon running away with his head in his hands.

When Zhu Youjian saw Zhengyang Gate, he suddenly felt a stinging pain in the corner of his eye. It turned out that the craftsmen of Liulichang had hung newly polished bronze mirrors all over the storefronts. Hundreds of mirrors refracted the blazing sun into golden arrows, all of which were projected onto the center of the imperial road.

Upon witnessing this scene, a civil official wept bitterly, exclaiming, "We welcome the royal army with food and drink... The glorious scene of ancient times has returned once again. I have no regrets in this life... I have no regrets in this life!"

"Long live His Majesty! Long live the Ming Dynasty!"

Gradually, more and more people joined in the chanting.

Zhu Youjian was very satisfied with the current state of public sentiment in the capital. Scholars, farmers, artisans and merchants were all gathered together. Although this was due to his personal influence, it was ultimately a qualitative change.

……

At dawn the following day, the Five Phoenix Drums sounded three times on the Meridian Gate tower.

After Zhu Youjian traveled through time, he finally ushered in his first formal grand court assembly.

The rituals of the grand court assembly in this era were extremely complex.

Especially after Zhu Youjian's triumphant return, his prestige was unparalleled, and the officials dared not slacken their efforts.

All court ceremonies were performed according to the highest level of etiquette.

All officials in Beizhili, except for necessary border defense personnel, were present.

More than a thousand officials stretched from the Hall of Supreme Harmony all the way to the square outside.

The Imperial Guards, consisting of elite soldiers and five hundred armored cavalry, formed a tight encirclement around the area.

The civil officials, led by Ni Yuanlu, and the military officers, led by Huang Degong, all knelt down and shouted three times.

"Long live my emperor!"

Amidst cheers, an official from the Court of State Ceremonial stepped forward, carrying a brochure covered with yellow silk.

That area contained newly expanded territory in Liaodong, or rather, a new map of Liaodong that Zhang Shize sent by fast horseman when he was nearing the border.

Although it was said to be newly developed land, it was actually still the territory of the Jianzhou Three Guards.

It didn't even reach one-third.

However, this did not prevent the court officials from praising Zhu Youjian for this matter.

This was also tacitly approved by Zhu Youjian.

He needed to accumulate merit to appease those in the court and lay the foundation for future political reforms.

Sometimes, reputation is more useful than a sword.

Ni Yuanlu stepped forward at the opportune moment and loudly proclaimed, "His Majesty personally led the expedition for three months, beheading 140,000 enemies. This is an unprecedented victory since Emperor Xuanzong's northern expedition. I request that the Fengshan ceremony be performed to inform Heaven and offer sacrifices at the Imperial Ancestral Temple."

“Ni Qing is mistaken.” Zhu Youjian deliberately placed the paperweight on the imperial desk, startling the Minister of Revenue into dropping his memorial.

"The rebel Li Zicheng still occupies Shaanxi and Luoyang, and the Jurchens still covet Liaoxi. In the past, Emperor Wu of Han performed the Fengshan ceremony at Mount Tai, taking the westward flight of the Xiongnu as a merit. Emperor Tangzong inscribed a stone at Yinshan, taking the annihilation of the Turks as a precedent. If I were to offer sacrifices to Heaven at this time, wouldn't I be following the example of Emperor Zhenzong of Song?"

The hall fell into a deathly silence.

Several compilers from the Hanlin Academy stole glances at Ni Yuanlu, only to see the Grand Secretary calmly bow again, saying, "Your Majesty's civil and military achievements far surpass those of the Han and Tang dynasties. Now that the Mongol tribes have submitted and Liaodong has surrendered, it is fitting to announce this to Heaven and Earth to reassure the people. I have heard that auspicious clouds have appeared on Mount Tai."

"Do you intend to implicate me in an unjust act?"

"As long as the rebel Li Zicheng holds sway and the Jurchens remain, I will not set foot on Mount Tai!"

Zhu Youjian suddenly stood up, his twelve-tasseled jade ornaments clanging loudly as he struck them. "Issue an edict to the Court of Imperial Sacrifices: save the silver from the Fengshan ceremony and use it for military expenses. Instruct the Imperial Observatory to choose an auspicious day to visit the Xiaoling Mausoleum."

This refusal had already been discussed and agreed upon with Ni Yuanlu when the army crossed the Lugou Bridge.

After all, at this time, people were used to the custom of declining and then requesting three times. Zhu Youjian, who wanted fame and status, naturally could not escape this custom.

After deciding to only offer sacrifices to ancestors, all the officials knelt down and shouted, "Your Majesty is wise!"

After rising to his feet again, Ni Yuanlu tremblingly presented the "Memorial on the Pacification of the Barbarians and the Rewards".

"In this campaign, many brave warriors emerged, especially those who excelled in the four categories. I request that they be rewarded."

This is the second prelude, after all, Zhu Youjian was going to touch politics, the lifeblood of the thousand officials under the Taihe Hall.

While it's possible to suppress it by force, a win-win situation is clearly better.

He simply cannot find any officials with governing experience to fill the vacancies.

Now, these thousand or so people are being split in two and used again.

Zhu Youjian, of course, pretended not to know, "Then let Ni Qing tell us."

"Your Majesty, this conferment of titles and rewards was jointly approved by the Ministry of War, the Anti-Corruption Bureau, the Pacification Commissioner's Office, and the military judges."

"His Majesty was the first to charge in this battle, and he led the charge himself..."

"Enough, enough. I don't need your approval to know my own worth. Continue." Zhu Youjian ruthlessly dismissed the flattery offered by the Ministry of War.

Ni Yuanlu had anticipated this outcome, and without changing her expression, she continued, "The Northern Army Commander Huang Degong is a skillful commander who first blocked... He possesses both virtue and power, and should be promoted to Marquis of Zhenbei."

"Zheng Sen has rendered meritorious service to the emperor, directly attacking the capital... He shall be granted the title of Earl of Jinghai."

"Qi Yuan has rendered meritorious service in managing his subordinates. He always leads the charge in battle and wins every attack. He is loyal and brave without equal... He should be enfeoffed as the Earl of Jiaqing."

“Ni Yuanlu…”

This record of rewards is ridiculously long.

It took half an hour just to finish reading it; I don't know how the Ministry of War managed to compile the statistics overnight.

Moreover, there has been no disclosure, not even Ni Yuanlu and Wang Jiayan were left out.

Zhu Youjian naturally wouldn't refuse.

The current practice of bestowing rewards and honors is intended to bring a large number of officials and military officers onto one's side, thereby further reducing resistance to reform.

Not only that, he also wanted to win over the entire army.

"All approved! Furthermore, I hereby issue an imperial edict: each soldier in the Beijing Garrison shall receive an additional three months' salary, the compensation for those who died in battle shall be doubled, the Kharachin tribe shall be granted a nomadic gold book, and the Sunite tribe's annual reward shall be increased by 30%."

"The Chahar tribe has rendered meritorious service to the emperor, and has been granted a thousand miles of grassland to support its people. The Chahar Khan, Abunai, is hereby granted the title of King of Chahar of the Great Ming Dynasty, a hereditary title."

"The newly established Chahar Circuit is equivalent to the two capitals and thirteen circuits of our Great Ming. All the people of the Mongol tribes shall be treated the same as the people of our Great Ming, without distinction of rank or seniority. They shall pay the same taxes and enjoy the same luxuries!"

As soon as he finished speaking, another round of cheers erupted.

Having secured both military power and the greater good, Ni Yuanlu finally revealed the key points of this grand court assembly.

"Your Majesty, I have ten memorials outlining new policies, and I humbly request Your Majesty's decision." Just as Wang Chengen was about to take the memorial, Zhu Youjian went straight down the steps and snatched it away.

The courtiers noticed that the emperor's lips curled up wider and wider as he looked at the emperor, and a sense of unease crept into their hearts.

(End of this chapter)