Di Ming

Chapter 294 A Letter of Gratitude

Zhu Yin poured Tian Yi a cup of Autumn Dew White wine and said, "Uncle, please speak. I am all ears."

Tian Yi dismissed his servants and Zhu Yin's guards, and said:

"Child Tiger, I have three things to tell you. I originally left you a secret letter, but since you've come to deliver it to me, I'll tell you in person. The first thing is about Zhang Jing!"

"Zhang Jing?" Zhu Yin narrowed his eyes, thinking to himself, "Just as I thought."

The latest intelligence from the palace indicates that the Emperor and Consort Zheng have accepted bribes from Zhang Jing and have decided to reinstate Zhang Jing, who was dismissed several years ago, to the position of Grand Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial.

The emperor and Lady Zheng planned to use the treacherous and ruthless Zhang Jing to replace the upright and honest Tian Yi, in order to compete with the officials and secure the position of crown prince for their beloved son, Zhu Changxun.

In Zhu Yin's view as a time traveler, Wanli was also affected by the butterfly effect, becoming a bit more "enlightened" than in the original history, and began to learn from his grandfather Jiajing, using villains as proxies to deal with officials.

This is not a good sign.

Historically, Zhang Jing was impeached and dismissed by officials and had no chance of being reinstated; he would have died of depression a few years later. But now, he is actually going to replace Tian Yi and return to the Directorate of Ceremonial.

Tian Yi continued, "I built Shanyun Temple in Xishan, which is my place of worship before the Buddha. Under the pine tree at the far west end of the temple's pilgrimage area, I buried a bronze box containing the letter of gratitude that Zhang Jing gave me back then."

"This is a letter of gratitude he wrote in blood before Guan Yu. Whether it's me or anyone else related to me, as long as they hold this letter of gratitude, they are his benefactors. He takes this very seriously and it's not a joke."

"Zhang Jing's letter of gratitude?" Zhu Yin was greatly surprised, not expecting that Tian Yi had done Zhang Jing a favor.

Tian Yi nodded, his tone somewhat wistful. "Zhang Jing was a treacherous and vindictive minister who would stop at nothing to get revenge. That's why the court officials tried every means to impeach him back then, forcing the emperor to dismiss him. But Zhang Jing had one redeeming quality out of a hundred flaws: he was a devout follower of Guan Yu and always repaid kindness."

"He was once a henchman of Yan Song in the palace, secretly passing on palace news for Yan's faction. After Yan Song fell from power, Emperor Shizong wanted to have him beaten to death, but I mustered up the courage to plead for him, and Emperor Shizong spared his life. It has been twenty-seven years since then."

"This is the first time I have saved him. The reason I saved him is because he was only in his early twenties at the time, and he had a long future ahead of him. I hope he can turn over a new leaf."

"Because of this, he secretly regarded me as his benefactor, but I never expected him to repay me and always kept my distance from him."

"Later, he curried favor with the late emperor and became the emperor's chief advisor, rising rapidly in rank. After Zhang Juzheng's death, he became the chief eunuch and director of the Eastern Depot."

"He was arrogant and domineering in the Directorate of Ceremonial, offending all the officials in the outer court, and the emperor had no choice but to abandon him. After he fell from power, everyone took advantage of his misfortune, and some even wanted him dead. It was only because of this that someone sent someone to save his life. Otherwise, how could he have survived to this day?"

Zhu Yin said, "So, your uncle saved him twice. The first time was one thing, but why did he save him the second time?"

Tian Yi laughed and said, "Zhihu, you are very perceptive and not an outsider. Why don't you try to guess?"

Zhu Yin thought for a moment, "My uncle is ultimately thinking of the royal family and the emperor, not truly loyal to the outer court. So, keeping Zhang Jing as a tool might one day help the emperor check and balance the outer court?"

At this point, Zhu Yin couldn't help but be amazed by Tian Yi's painstaking efforts and cunning.

Now, everyone in the court and the public, including the emperor, believes that although Tian Yi is an inner court official, his heart is with the outer court.

Little did anyone know that this was not Tian Yi's true intention. From beginning to end, Tian Yi was utterly loyal to the emperor. His close relationship with the civil officials was, in reality, a deceptive tactic of feigned compliance.
No wonder the emperor has been able to refuse to appoint Zhu Changluo as crown prince for the past few years, and even reject the calls from the outer court for Zhu Changluo to study. It turns out that Tian Yi secretly withstood the pressure; he was the one most deeply hidden in supporting the emperor's decision to appoint a crown prince!
Otherwise, the emperor would have succumbed to the pressure from the outer court long ago.

Ironically, the emperor was completely unaware of Tian Yi's forbearance and humiliation, unaware that Tian Yi was "physically in Cao's camp but his heart was with Han," and unaware of Tian Yi's utter loyalty. Zhu Yin smiled bitterly, "So, Uncle-in-law didn't support Changluo. Uncle-in-law, you've deceived us all. Until now, the court officials still thought you supported the eldest prince."

Tian Yi sighed, “Zhihu, you are truly exceptionally intelligent. Indeed, I support neither the eldest son nor the third son. What I support is that the Emperor can choose whoever he wants to appoint. This is the Emperor’s own family matter, and the ministers have no right to interfere.”

"That's why I saved Zhang Jing a second time, leaving behind this sharp knife to deal with foreign officials on behalf of the Emperor."

"You are a civil official, and I am a court official. Logically, I would never tell you these things. But..."

"But I spent two days in the imperial prison, unable to sleep at night, thinking a lot. I've figured out one thing: should I be most loyal to the Ming Dynasty, or should I be most loyal to the Emperor?"

Tian Yi looked very sad as he said this.

"The nation is of paramount importance, the emperor is secondary. The ancient sages had already given the answer, but I was the emperor's servant and was unwilling to think about it before."

"Now I finally understand. If the emperor is wise and diligent in governing, and acts with public interest, then the emperor is the nation, and the emperor is of utmost importance. But if the emperor is not a wise ruler, and acts selfishly, then the nation is of utmost importance, and the emperor is of less importance."

"Unfortunately, the current emperor is not a wise ruler, which greatly disappoints me. After much thought, I have no choice but to disregard the emperor's willfulness for the sake of our Great Ming Dynasty. Even if I can no longer advise the emperor and make him a sage like Yao and Shun, I cannot help the emperor to undermine the country by indulging in his evil deeds."

"Therefore, I can only place my hopes on the outer court, hoping that the ministers there can restrain the emperor's willfulness and ensure the stability of the Ming Dynasty. Only in this way can we be worthy of the late emperor."

“Young Tiger, His Majesty worries that you are too young and fears that you might become a powerful minister like Zhang Juzheng in the future. But I know that your loyalty to the Ming Dynasty is as clear as day!”

"Even if you do become a powerful minister in the future, I will still believe in your loyalty to the Ming Dynasty. Your unwavering loyalty to the Ming Dynasty is enough. So what if you become a powerful minister like Zhang Juzheng?"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yin's expression remained inscrutable, revealing nothing.

He cupped his hands and said, "Uncle knows my heart well. I have studied the classics since I was a child, and of course, the country is more important than the emperor and father. My loyalty to the Ming Dynasty will never change."

Tian Yi nodded and smiled, saying with a relieved expression, "I didn't misjudge you, so I'm completely at ease. You can take out Zhang Jing's letter of gratitude and give it to him yourself. He will naturally repay your kindness. This was the agreement I made with him back then."

"He will soon become the Grand Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial, and in the next few years at the very least, his power will surpass that of the Grand Secretary, and he may very well hold absolute power in the court. Many civil officials may die at his hands. With his letter of gratitude, you might be able to escape disaster at a critical moment. With his help, your official position will be easier to maintain."

"Of course I regret saving him now, but there's no going back, and I can't stop him from doing evil. Alas, I was too blindly loyal to the Emperor before, to the point that I disregarded the safety of the country and left behind someone like Zhang Jing who could potentially harm the world. Now it's too late to say anything."

"I also hope that you can use the letter of gratitude to secretly befriend him and use his remaining conscience to make him restrain himself a little and not go too far. If you can make him do less evil, it will be as if you have redeemed some of my sins."

Zhu Yin knew that this letter of gratitude would be of great use. Tian Yi giving him the letter was like giving him a very generous gift.

The favor owed to the next Grand Eunuch!

Moreover, after Zhang Jing's reinstatement, he will definitely become even more powerful, becoming an extremely influential eunuch and also in charge of the Eastern Depot! He may become a powerful eunuch similar to Liu Jin, Wang Zhi, and Wei Zhongxian.

If he didn't receive a letter of gratitude, Zhang Jing would definitely punish him, the tutor of the eldest prince. How could he possibly stay?
With the letter of gratitude, although he certainly couldn't become political allies with Zhang Jing, their secret friendship provided an extra layer of security.

Tian Yi drank another cup of wine and said, "The second matter concerns the descendants of Jian Shuren and Wu Shuren!"

P.S.: Only one short chapter today, sorry. I'll definitely add more to make up for it! Goodnight!
(End of this chapter)