Da Ming: Father, step aside, I'll be the prime minister!

Chapter 112 Shen Shixing Makes His Move (10,000 words per day!)

The emperor's cold words sent a chill down Xu Xuemo's spine.

He could sense the emperor's displeasure with his words.

But Xu Xuemo didn't care. As long as he could get Zhang Juzheng's influence out of the court, wouldn't the emperor still have to rely on these upright officials?

Holding the reins of justice, even the emperor had to compromise with them!
So Xu Xuemo, though he dared not raise his head, straightened his back and spoke loudly to the emperor.

“Your Majesty wishes to know how the people of the world are suffering, so I will tell Your Majesty.”

Since March, Shuntian Prefecture has reported that 2,536 people have died from the epidemic in Tongzhou, 1,897 people in Daxing, and 1,108 people in Wanping!

The disease spread so rapidly that many families contracted the disease overnight, with the entire family falling ill and no one even able to go out to seek medical treatment.

He looked heartbroken: "Under such circumstances, Zhang Jiangling actually listened to his youngest son's absurd words and implemented some kind of plague prevention and control plan, sealing off the entire capital city!"

Your Majesty, do you know how many people are trapped in their homes, unable to earn a living, and how many have nowhere to seek medical treatment!

To be able to rise to the second rank in officialdom, one must naturally be no ordinary person. Xu Xuemo read through these figures once and memorized them all without a single mistake.

"Ok?"

In an instant, the Wanli Emperor lost some of his confidence, and his face showed some hesitation. He subconsciously said...

"These numbers are not accurate enough."

There was no contingency plan for this part in the script that Zhang Yunxiu provided!

Who would have thought that Xu Xuemo could remember those numbers so well?
Xu Xuemo said vehemently, "If Your Majesty wants numbers, then I will give Your Majesty numbers!"

He continued, almost without thinking.

"Since March, the death toll from the plague in Datong Prefecture has reached 23,456! In Taigu County, 4,321 people have died! In Xinzhou, 3,208 people have died."

Before Xu Xuemo could finish speaking, an old minister in the main hall was so anxious that he kept stamping his feet.

"Shocking! Shocking!"

With tears streaming down his face, he stepped forward and tried to dissuade him.

"Your Majesty, you must not remain so stubborn! What have the people of the world done to deserve this?"

Xu Xuemo then looked at the emperor and said, "Does Your Majesty wish me to recite it again?"

He looked so confident, as if he had memorized all the reports.

Emperor Wanli's facial muscles twitched slightly, and he quickly said...

"Tens of thousands died in Datong Prefecture, while the death toll in the capital was far lower. How can this not prove the effectiveness of the plague prevention and control measures? You all..."

"Your Majesty!" Xu Xuemo said solemnly.

"The capital is the most virtuous place, and the people of the capital should naturally receive relief from the court. This relief is provided at ordinary times, so what does it have to do with Zhang Shiyuan?"
Even if ten thousand or a thousand of His Majesty die, aren't they all your subjects?!

His question immediately stirred up the emotions of many ministers in the palace, and many of them looked at the emperor with a hint of indignation.

Emperor Wanli took a step back, and his facial expressions began to spiral out of control again.

At this moment, what he wanted most was to pull Zhang Yunxiu to his side and let that kid argue with these civil officials.

As an emperor, how could he possibly find evidence to refute Xu Xuemo's exceptional memory?

Most importantly, as Xu Xuemo said, how can we prove that Zhang Yunxiu's plague prevention and control plan is effective?

Emperor Wanli had actually made some preparations in order to understand the "big head plague".

He consulted historical records and found that the earliest record of the plague was from the Yuan Dynasty, which stated, "In the winter of the second year of the Huangqing reign, a great plague struck Dadu (Beijing)."

Then, the "Treatise on the Five Elements in the History of Song" records that around the eighth year of the Qingli era, a plague broke out in the Hebei region, and "an envoy was sent to distribute medicine to the plague in Hebei."

However, most of these records do not show specific figures, but are only described as a vague "major epidemic".

If you want to prove that Zhang Yunxiu's strategy cured the disease and saved lives, how can you do so?

Can we rely solely on the word of mouth of a few ordinary people?

However, Xu Xuemo did present the exact number of deaths, and those were all living, breathing people!
Whether it was Emperor Wanli or Zhang Yunxiu, could they possibly create another scenario where no plague prevention measures were adopted, and then compare the results of the two scenarios?
This is simply impossible!
For a moment, Emperor Wanli's tongue seemed to tie itself in knots as he continued, "I believe that Renmin Medical Clinic is indeed effective. If you don't believe me, you can go and see for yourselves, and compare it with other traditional medical methods. I've heard that many nobles in the city have gone to Zhang Yunxiu for treatment."

"Your Majesty!" Xu Xuemo exclaimed, feigning grief and indignation. "Politics is politics! How can it be determined by mere hearsay? The entire capital, both inside and outside the city, has been harmed by that Zhang Shiyuan! How can there still be any decent doctors left?!"

After hearing this, Emperor Wanli was speechless. He could feel the grief and disappointment in the eyes of his ministers, and the more they looked at him, the more flustered he became.

Seeing Xu Xuemo's aggressive demeanor, he stepped forward again and spoke loudly to the Wanli Emperor.

"Your Majesty! We must not make another mistake! It is not too late to turn back now!"

The Wanli Emperor's face flushed red, and he ultimately failed to maintain his regal demeanor.

Just then, someone finally stepped forward.

"His Majesty."

Shen Shixing's face remained expressionless, as if nothing that had just happened had affected him. He slowly stepped forward and respectfully addressed the Wanli Emperor.

"I cannot agree with what Minister Xu has said!"

Emperor Wanli looked at the other party with some surprise, suddenly remembering what Zhang Yunxiu had said beforehand: Shenshi Xing would give him a surprise in the court.

The emperor had already given up hope on Shen Shixing, but he didn't expect the other party to make a move at this time!

Shen Rumo, Zhang Siwei, stood aside, gritting his teeth, but ultimately he couldn't stop him.

Xu Xuemo and the courtiers in the hall were all somewhat surprised. When did Shen Shixing start speaking?

This doesn't fit this person's character at all!
Shen Shixing ignored the reactions of others and continued speaking to himself.

"I was entrusted by the Grand Secretary to handle the prevention and control of the plague in and around the capital. If there is any fault, I am certainly to blame."

What I see is completely different from what Minister Xu said. The claim that the large number of deaths among the people of the capital due to the plague prevention and control measures is utter nonsense!

On the contrary, it was precisely because of Zhang Shiyuan's plague prevention and control plan that the people of the capital were able to achieve a 'mortality rate' far lower than that of other places!

He was worried that his ministers wouldn't understand, so he emphasized the words "mortality rate".

Xu Xuemo sneered and said, "Grand Secretary Shen's words are meaningless. Can you prove its validity with just a few words from you?"

Surely Grand Secretary Shen wouldn't be thinking of inviting people up here to fabricate stories and deceive the Emperor!

In the view of Xu Xuemo and others, as long as they stick to this rhetoric, they can remain invincible.

Do you have witnesses? I have witnesses too! There are many people in the capital who have lost loved ones to the plague. With just a little guidance, they will hate Zhang Shiyuan and the prevention and control plan to the core!

How could Shen Shixing and others possibly refute this?
Shen Shixing ignored the other party and continued to bow to the emperor.

"Your Majesty, I have something that can prove the effectiveness of the plague prevention and control, which will surely convince the officials of the court!"

What a loud tone!
His words made even the Wanli Emperor feel somewhat guilty.

Is this Shen Shixing reliable?

But considering it was Zhang Yunxiu's arrangement, he decided to give it a shot, nodding and saying...

"That's right!"

Shen Shixing bowed again, then immediately turned to the eunuch beside him and instructed him to fetch the items he had prepared beforehand from outside the palace.

A moment later, the eunuch led several servants into the main hall.

They carefully carried a scroll, which was a full ten feet wide, into the main hall.

Xu Xuemo frowned deeply upon seeing this: "Shen Rumo, what exactly are you trying to do?"

Shen Shixing ignored the other party and instead asked the emperor.

"Your Majesty, may we allow this scroll to be unfurled in the main hall?"

Emperor Wanli was already impatient and hurriedly waved his hand, saying...

"No need for formalities!"

With the emperor's permission, the servants spread the scroll out evenly on the floor in the center of the hall.

As the scroll was unfurled, the officials in the hall became quite curious, leaning forward to see what it held.

But when the scroll was unfurled, everyone looked puzzled.

The ink marks and blank spaces above together create a semi-square pattern.

The pattern is composed of squares.

The most striking feature is the two thick lines extending along the edge, each ending with an arrow.

There were even labels on it, one for the horizontal axis and one for the vertical axis.

Above the pattern, there are two zigzag lines that meander downwards, marked with vermilion ink, making them exceptionally eye-catching.

Many people noticed something amiss, but most of the ministers remained completely baffled.

Zhang Siwei, in particular, showed anger on his face and suddenly stood up, pointing at Shen Shixing and saying.

"Shen Rumo, are you going to follow Zhang Shiyuan's example and do something outrageous!"

Standing on a high place, the Wanli Emperor could see the contents of the scroll more clearly, and as he looked at it, he found it somewhat familiar.

Suddenly my eyes lit up!
"Cough cough!"

Shen Shixing coughed twice, his face looking somewhat awkward as he spoke.

"Please look, everyone. This is a line graph showing the trend of the number of infections and deaths in the capital over the past month in the fight against the plague!"

(End of this chapter)