The Ming Dynasty's Five Hundred Years

Chapter 19 Clan and State
"Your Majesty, I have a report to submit!"

The current head of the Censorate, the Left Censor-in-Chief, concurrently served as the Minister of Personnel. As a high-ranking official, who would dare not take him seriously? Even the dukes and marquises among the military generals looked over.

When Li Yuanming heard Zhan Hui speak, he breathed a slight sigh of relief and wiped the sweat from his forehead. He never imagined that one day he would be forced into a corner by a young man.

When Li Qi saw Zhan Hui, he finally couldn't hold back any longer and slowly loosened his tightly clenched right hand.

Yang Jing, Zhan Hui, and Li Yuanming, the three who pushed for the downfall of the Han state government, are now all accounted for.

The thought of his great revenge making Li Qi tremble slightly.

Zhan Hui didn't look at Li Yuanming and Li Qi, but directly bowed to the emperor. "Your Majesty, although it is said that the more a reason is debated, the clearer it becomes, even the sages of the past had to work hard before they could act. Even if Mr. Zishan and the Imperial Son-in-Law debated for three days and three nights in this court, they would not be able to determine who is superior."

Everyone in the hall immediately realized that he was targeting Li Qi. Li Yuanming was already speechless. How could he not distinguish between superiors and inferiors? His bias was too obvious.

Zhu Yuanzhang narrowed his eyes slightly. He had never known that Zhan Hui and Li Yuanming had such a good relationship.
On any other day, he would probably have already felt murderous intent.

However, he was in a very good mood today.

In the past, he could only use his imperial power to suppress these scholars, but to some extent, the fact that a person can only keep overturning the table proves that he has already lost.

This was the first time he had made these scholars suffer a setback. Li Qi did a great job!
"What insightful opinion does Minister Zhan have?"

Zhan Hui's face was calm, as if he were impartially and fairly saying, "Although the Imperial Son-in-Law is willing to share the burden for His Majesty, his actions and the cases he has judged have greatly disappointed the people's expectations."

Liu San Niangzi was just a woman, and her death was not a pity. However, the fact that countless local elders and gentry dared not speak out against her anger was a matter that could shake the very foundations of our Ming Dynasty!
Your Majesty, please investigate this matter thoroughly!

His words immediately quieted the hall down a bit.

The way everyone looked at him changed.

high!
Minister Zhan is truly brilliant!
Zhan Hui was very pleased with himself.

Does it matter whether a case is right or wrong?
unimportant!
Is winning or losing a debate important?

It doesn’t matter!

Does it matter what the Neo-Confucian school has gone through?

Even less important!

The important thing is that Li Qi's current actions have displeased the most grassroots elders and gentry of the Ming Empire, and the Ming Dynasty will lose the support of the people.

Your Majesty, surely you know what this means?

Are you still going to protect the insignificant Li Qi, at the cost of losing the hearts and minds of the people?

Zhu Yuanzhang's expression changed drastically, and he frowned deeply. He knew, of course, that the clan was the foundation upon which the Ming Dynasty relied for stability, and that nothing could go wrong with it!
Zhan Hui was somewhat smug about his trump card. No matter what case he was solving or what debate he was doing, it all came down to the word "politics." When Li Qi's actions crossed the bottom line of Ming Dynasty politics, he would have nowhere to run!
"Li Qi, do you have anything to say?"

Those with a keen ear could hear a subtle, almost imperceptible change in the emperor's voice—a hint of anticipation mixed with icy coldness.

If Li Qi cannot give a satisfactory response, he will be exiled to Jiangpu again, and this time, he will die there.

Zhu Yuanzhang looked down at Li Qi. As long as Li Qi gave a passable answer, he would put the matter aside.

Zhan Hui miscalculated!
Li Qi is very important.

Li Qi remained unhurried, as if he had no idea that he had been pushed to the edge of a cliff.

"Father, Minister Zhan said that I have caused the court to lose the hearts of the people, but I think it is because the local gentry and elders have not followed the example of your wise rule!"
Since the sage Duke of Zhou promoted the system of rites, the position of emperor has been established to be passed down only to sons, and the bad habit of succession between brothers in the Shang Dynasty has been abandoned.

On the grasslands, however, fraternal inheritance is common among nomadic peoples. The essence of levirate marriage is actually allowing brothers to inherit property, but throughout Han Chinese history, we have never heard of brothers having inheritance rights!

"Your subject has awarded all of Li Dezhu's property to his son Li Hutou, without giving a single bit to the Li clan."

It is not about destroying the clan or sowing discord among relatives.

It is a good thing that a clan has a portion of its public property that can be used to help poor clan members.

But helping one's clansmen is an act of kindness; inheriting property is another matter entirely.

Your son wants to tell the world that a father's assets can only be inherited by his son. His brothers have no right to inherit, let alone uncles or elders!
Just like in my great Ming Dynasty, the emperor's position should be passed on to the crown prince, and the positions of the princes can only be inherited by their heirs!
Who dares to say that what I have said is wrong?

Minister Zhan and Li Yuanming! These two harbor treacherous intentions, plotting to disrupt the dynasty's continuity and plunge the Ming empire into chaos. We implore Your Majesty to see the truth!

After saying that, Li Qi knelt down on the ground. Zhan Hui and Li Yuanming, who were standing next to him, also knelt down with a thud. Cold sweat instantly covered their bodies, and both of them looked pale.

Some of the military officers who didn't understand wanted to ask in a low voice what had happened and why Zhan Hui and Li Yuanming had suddenly knelt down.

But the civil officials could understand, and almost every one of them was trembling with fear and dared not speak!

No one expected that Li Qi would find such a fatal flaw!
If all the property of a clan is jointly owned, what about the royal family?

The royal family's wealth is the entire world; can it be shared among the royal family members?
What a joke!
When Cheng Yi and Zhu Xi created Neo-Confucianism, they probably never imagined that someone would apply it to the imperial family.

No one would have imagined that an emperor would actually value primogeniture.

In the Ming Dynasty, let alone shared ownership, anyone outside the eldest son's lineage who even glanced at the throne deserved to die!
The current ruler's control over the royal family is unprecedented in history. He has made detailed demands on everything from titles and obligations to even the characters in their names.

What matters most to those in power is the succession of the dynasty. The Ming Dynasty has an absolute system of primogeniture, and anyone who dares to disobey will be punished severely according to the Ming Dynasty's ancestral precepts!
The Ming Dynasty could only be passed down through the line of Crown Prince Zhu Biao, and the succession of the princes could only be inherited by the eldest son of the legitimate wife. Except for the Qin and Jin princes, even if a prince had no son, he would have to give up his kingdom and would never be allowed to fall into the hands of his brothers!

If the imperial family does this, how can the common people not follow suit?
Some things are nothing on the scale, but once you put them on, they weigh a ton.

If no one brings this up, the people will naturally have their own rules. But if this matter is brought up, it means that people's thinking should change!

It's chilling to think about: can those ministers, accustomed to clan rules, truly uphold the principle of primogeniture in the Ming Dynasty?
The more Zhu Yuanzhang pondered, the more his thoughts uncontrollably drifted in the direction Li Qi had set out for him, and the cold glint in his eyes was almost tangible!

Which is more important, the succession of the clan or the dynasty?

If anyone dares to have even the slightest doubt, they probably don't know which way the road to the underworld leads!

If Zhan Hui's words were as high as Mount Tai, then Li Qi was as high as the heavens!

The temperature in the hall visibly dropped, and the emperor's chilling voice slowly descended, "Do any of you have anything to say?"

Zhan Hui and Li Yuanming stammered, "Your Majesty, we did not... we dare not..."

Li Qi stood calmly with his hands folded. There was no escaping the issue of political bottom lines. Once it came up, it could not be fooled. The court had to give the clearest response. The more serious the issue, the more important it was to extinguish any possibility of doubt!
When the Qin state implemented its reforms, it cut off the nose of the crown prince's tutor, which was the harshest response to the conservatives!
Times have changed, but the situation remains the same.

There is no better response than the heads of the two high-ranking officials, and no better offering than the officials who sit high in the imperial court!
Even those arrogant and domineering military generals understood what had happened and fell silent in fear.

……

"Zhan Hui and Li Yuanming harbored treacherous intentions and attempted to disrupt the succession of the Ming Dynasty. Their crimes are unforgivable. They shall be executed by slow slicing and their entire families shall be exterminated!"

The assembled officials watched helplessly as a minister and a former minister were dragged out of the palace.

"A joint petition was submitted to impeach the Imperial Son-in-Law Li Qi and his students, demanding that they all be stripped of their academic titles and sentenced to death!"

Li Qi stepped out of the hall and stood with his hands clasped behind his back. The assembled officials who had come out of the hall all looked at him with complicated expressions.

"The Imperial Son-in-Law Li Qi is well-versed in the Way of the Emperor. He is promoted to the rank of Grand Secretary of the Eastern Pavilion (a fifth-rank official) and appointed to the Hanlin Academy. He will serve as an advisor to the Emperor and will also be responsible for investigating the customs and historical events of the realm."

Having traveled to the Ming Dynasty for a year and a half, the three people who orchestrated the downfall of the Duke's mansion have all been beheaded.

The sun was a bit dazzling, and Li Qi slightly raised his hand.

A cold gaze came from ahead.

Li Qi looked over and saw a man with eagle eyes staring at him.

Marquis Jingning, Ye Sheng!

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

The Minister of Personnel, Zhan Hui, and the Minister of Rites, Li Yuanming, framed the Li family. In December of the twenty-fourth year of the Hongwu reign (1380), they were executed in the case of Liu San Niangzi. The two traitors were executed by slow slicing, and their entire families were beheaded, thus ending this feud. —From *A Collection of Records of the Li Family's Grievances and Ancestral Accusations*, Volume 1, [Hongwu Reign Records]

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Yang Jing, courtesy name Zhongning, was intelligent and insightful, skilled in criminal law, but he was also stubborn and intolerant. Zhan Hui, courtesy name Zishan, was intelligent and resolute, but he was also treacherous and cunning, which ultimately led to his downfall. Li Yuan, courtesy name Zishan, was highly respected and admired by all, but he was also cowardly and hesitant.

These three men, having brought their books to the capital, rose to high positions as ministers within ten years. Yet, one wrong act led to their downfall, implicating their entire families. Was this not ordained by Heaven? —Index to the Hongwu Prison Cases

(End of this chapter)