Di Ming

Chapter 435 Toyotomi Hideyoshi is dead

"Your Majesty! Grand Tutor, please execute Cao Ming to restore order and discipline the people!"

Fan Lun raised his tablet, his expression stern. "The struggle between the North and South for legitimacy is about the legitimacy passed down from Emperor Chengzu. Your Majesty is the eldest son of the Retired Emperor and naturally inherits the imperial lineage of Emperor Chengzu! Where does Cao Ming's statement place Your Majesty? Where does it place the Retired Emperor? And where does it place Emperor Chengzu? His heart is deserving of death!"

Several officials said again, "We second that! Please execute Cao Ming to appease Changling!"

When the officials heard Fan Lun and others rebuke Cao Ming and even request the emperor to execute Cao Ming, most of them were displeased.

Many people think that Fan Lun and others overreacted, made a mountain out of a molehill, or were even unreasonable!

Emperor Chengzu abolished the Jianwen Emperor's title and reign title, which was pitied by the people. After Yongle, ministers in each generation suggested restoring the imperial title, but all of them were rejected by the reigning emperor. However, there were still many court officials who advocated restoring the Jianwen Emperor's title.

Among the famous officials were Li Xian, Shang Lu, Yang Tinghe, and Wang Shizhen.

Several years ago, the Minister of Rites in Beijing petitioned to restore the title of Emperor Jianwen and bestow upon him the temple name Huizong. Although the retired emperor did not agree, he merely kept the petition to himself and did not pursue the matter further.

The minister who advocated restoring the title of Emperor Jianwen was Chen Pu of the Chenghua era, who was punished the most severely, but he was only flogged in court and stripped of his official rank.

The second most severely punished was Lu Can, who was only demoted to county magistrate.

But Fan Lun and others are shouting for Cao Ming to be killed, as if Cao Ming had committed heinous crimes. What are their true intentions?
Should we return the favor to Changling? Is the one in Changling the successor in line to the throne?
They lacked Cao Ming's boldness and courage, but that didn't mean they disapproved of his actions.

The fact that people in the world dare not speak out does not mean that there is no sense of right and wrong in their hearts, nor does it mean that the scale of justice does not exist!
Zhu Yin appeared calm, but inwardly he harbored deep resentment towards Fan Lun and the others. Cao Ming, a member of Zhu's faction, petitioned to restore the Jianwen Emperor's title. Although it was Cao Ming's suggestion, it was merely a test, not an immediate restoration of the Jianwen Emperor's title.

Unexpectedly, Fan Lun and others immediately began to call for Cao Ming's execution, attempting to suppress public opinion advocating for the restoration of Emperor Jianwen's title.

Why would Fan Lun and the others do this? Zhu Yin knew perfectly well!
This man was from Zhejiang and came from a prominent family. He may not have actually served as the Grand Minister of State Affairs in Nanjing in history. It was probably the butterfly effect of a time traveler that changed the trajectory of his official career.

However, this person's status as a representative of Zhejiang's big merchants and landlords remained unchanged.

During the Southern Dynasties, the Zhejiang faction was not only powerful but also very united. From high-ranking officials like Fan Lun to local officials, gentry, wealthy merchants, and powerful businessmen, their influence was so deep that a single move could have far-reaching consequences.

Before the division of North and South, Teacher Shen Yiguan was the representative of the Zhejiang Party in the central government. Now that North and South are divided and Teacher Shen has retired, Fan Lun is the representative of the Zhejiang Party in the Southern Dynasty, but he is not the only one.

Why did Fan Lun and others so strongly oppose restoring the Jianwen Emperor's title?

It's very simple: Emperor Jianwen opened the seas! Moreover, Emperor Jianwen's opening of the seas differed from Emperor Longqing's; it was a complete opening of the seas: "People are allowed to sail overseas, but communication with Japanese pirates is strictly prohibited!"

As long as you are not in league with the Japanese, you are free to sail and navigate the seas.

He also reformed the Maritime Trade Office, which was responsible for tributary trade, and transformed it into a customs economic department, no longer subject to the Ministry of Rites.

In other words, Emperor Jianwen was the only emperor since the founding of the Ming Dynasty to fully open up the seas and allow civilian ships to go overseas.

only.

Emperor Chengzu accused Emperor Jianwen of altering ancestral rules, including "Jianwen violated ancestral rules and now forbids people from going to sea" and "Jianwen changed many old regulations and arbitrarily relaxed the sea ban."

Opening up the sea was considered one of Jianwen's crimes.

During the brief Jianwen reign, 400 civilian ships from Zhejiang alone set sail annually, generating 300,000 taels of customs revenue each year. This was in the early Ming Dynasty, when silver was still relatively scarce.

Then, during the Yongle reign, private sea voyages were once again strictly prohibited, with "not a single plank allowed to go to sea," and only official trade was permitted. The sea tax plummeted to 30,000 taels, only one-tenth of that during the Jianwen reign.

Zheng He's first voyage to the Western Ocean took place only three years after Emperor Yongle ascended the throne. How could such a massive fleet have been built in just two or three years?

In ancient times, it took three years just to prepare qualified timber for shipbuilding.

Even if Emperor Chengzu immediately ordered the construction of a large fleet upon ascending the throne, it would still take at least four or five years for Zheng He's fleet to meet the requirements for long-distance voyages across the ocean.

Without several years of preparation, Emperor Chengzu could not have built the massive Zheng He fleet in just two or three years.

So who did the preparatory work?

Of course, it could only be Emperor Jianwen. The foundation for Zheng He's fleet, the world's largest at the time, was laid by Emperor Jianwen, both in terms of timber reserves and technical blueprints.

Later archaeological evidence has proven that the initial construction period of Zheng He's fleet was at least the fourth year of the Jianwen Emperor's reign, and at the earliest the second year.

In other words, construction of Zheng He's fleet had already begun before Emperor Chengzu even arrived in Nanjing! It may have been underway for two years!
The timber reserves were stockpiled even earlier. Archaeological evidence shows that the timber for the masts and keel of the treasure ship was felled before the second year of the Jianwen reign, possibly even in the first year of the Jianwen reign or the thirty-first year of the Hongwu reign.

There were two reasons why Emperor Chengzu ordered the construction of a large fleet immediately after ascending the throne:

First, the fleet was already under construction, the project was ready, and all that was needed was to continue pushing the project forward. That's why he unusually ordered the construction of "215 ships" shortly after assuming the throne.

Such a large project, if it wasn't partially completed and the building materials and blueprints were readily available, would it be possible that Emperor Chengzu, a ruler who rose to power on a military campaign, would have immediately spent money on large-scale shipbuilding so soon after ascending the throne? It simply doesn't make sense.

Secondly, Emperor Chengzu suspected that Emperor Jianwen had "abdicated the country and fled to the enemy," and that Jianwen had escaped by sea, so he ordered a search of the ocean.

Emperor Chengzu's suspicion that Emperor Jianwen had gone to sea also indirectly proves that Emperor Jianwen was a supporter of the Age of Exploration.

It is evident that without Jianwen, there would likely have been no Zheng He fleet, and thus no Zheng He voyages to the Western Ocean.

Emperor Jianwen's decision to open the seas was likely influenced by his father, Crown Prince Yiwen. Crown Prince Yiwen was mostly opposed to the maritime ban because his respected teacher, Song Lian, was a proponent of opening the seas!

If the teacher is a proponent of maritime studies, most of the students will also be proponents of maritime studies. Supporting evidence is that after Crown Prince Yiwen's death, Emperor Taizu immediately ordered the burning of the nautical records stored in the Eastern Palace.

This shows that during his lifetime, Crown Prince Yiwen not only had close ties with the maritime faction, but also possessed a large number of nautical books and instruments, which aroused the Emperor Taizu's displeasure and led to his order to burn them.

Another piece of evidence is that Crown Prince Yiwen once issued an edict ordering the provinces of Zhejiang and Fujian to temporarily suspend the sea ban. This was tantamount to disobeying the imperial edict of Emperor Taizu that "not a single plank is allowed to go to sea."

The third piece of evidence is that Qin Kui, an official under the Crown Prince, petitioned to allow civilians to build their own two-masted seagoing vessels. Similarly, Zhan Hui, also an official under the Crown Prince, petitioned to reduce the scope of the maritime ban. Were these two petitions merely coincidences? It's likely that both were at the Crown Prince's behest.

Historical records also contain considerable evidence to support the claim that Crown Prince Yiwen was at least a sympathizer of the pro-maritime movement. For example:

"The Crown Prince reports that the southeastern marshlands rely heavily on boats and rafts for their livelihood; prohibiting them would be like severing a lifeline."

"In the summer of the fifteenth year of Hongwu, upon hearing that the Crown Prince had ordered the opening of sea routes, a two-masted ship was built and sailed to Ryukyu."

"During the Hongwu reign, the Crown Prince heard that the people of Ou were losing their livelihoods by fishing at sea, so he secretly ordered the officials to loosen the nets."

On such a major national policy as the maritime ban, only Crown Prince Yiwen dared to disobey Emperor Taizu.

Crown Prince Yiwen's attitude undoubtedly had a significant impact on Emperor Jianwen. It is quite possible that Emperor Jianwen, as a child, saw the nautical books and instruments in his father's study that were later burned by his grandfather, and developed a strong interest in the sea.

Emperor Jianwen opened the door to the Age of Exploration with a brief four-year period of opening up the seas, but unfortunately it was just a flash in the pan.

The Yongle Encyclopedia was actually started by Emperor Jianwen. After Emperor Chengzu captured Nanjing, he took over the 30,000 volumes of books collected by Emperor Jianwen and took over the compilation team to continue compiling the book. Most of the original materials used to compile the encyclopedia were prepared during the Jianwen period.

Two major events during the Yongle reign—Zheng He's voyages to the Western Ocean and the compilation of the Yongle Encyclopedia—were actually based on the foundation laid by the Jianwen Emperor.

To be fair, Zhu Yin did not consider Emperor Jianwen a competent ruler. Otherwise, he wouldn't have squandered such a promising start.

Without the skill and wisdom of an emperor, even the ambition to open up the seas and the desire to compile books will be of no use.

Let's talk about the maritime ban. The so-called maritime ban actually only applies to the general public, but it has never restricted the powerful and wealthy. The rules were not made for them.

Thus, starting from the Yongle era, powerful coastal families once again engaged in rampant smuggling. The ban on maritime trade actually only helped them monopolize the maritime trade.

This kind of smuggling began during the Hongwu reign. Many of the so-called Japanese pirates of the Hongwu reign were actually created by these maritime merchants.

During the period of strict maritime prohibition, smuggling was rampant. On the contrary, during the Jianwen reign, which briefly opened the seas, the smuggling monopoly weakened because the maritime ban was lifted, and the court's tax revenue increased.

One likely reason for Jianwen's overthrow was that the gentry in the southeast hoped for his defeat. His defeat would allow them to continue the maritime ban!
If the title of Emperor Jianwen is restored, then the maritime policy implemented during Jianwen's reign will likely be reaffirmed, or at least widely discussed.

What the Zhejiang Party and other representatives fear most is the full opening of the sea!
When Emperor Longqing opened the port, he only opened a small port called Yuegang. After these interest groups' opposition was ineffective, they quickly monopolized and controlled Yuegang. The so-called opening of the sea during the Longqing era ultimately became a tool for them.

Fan Lun and others kept mentioning Emperor Chengzu and Changling, but these were just pretexts. They were the ones who wanted to cut off the Grand Canal transport, and they were also the ones who wanted a permanent ban on maritime trade.

Okay, let you guys have your fun for two years first.

Zhu Yin snapped out of his thoughts and swept his gaze, which carried an air of authority, over the officials.

Immediately, Fang Hongjing, the Commissioner of the Court of Judicial Review and one of the Nine Ministers, stepped forward to refute:
"Grand Minister of Rites, you are mistaken! If you were to execute an innocent minister for his words, what would that say about Emperor Taizu? As Minister of Rites, how could you claim that the throne was passed down from Emperor Chengzu? It should have been passed down from Emperor Taizu!"

"Grand Minister of Rites, your words are quite disrespectful. If the throne were to pass to Emperor Chengzu, then Emperor Taizu would not have been the founding emperor?"

"That's not what I meant!" Fan Lun said coldly. "This is a ridiculous and deceptive tactic by the Grand Silver Terrace!"

Gu Wenji, the Director of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, also said to Fan Lun, "Grand Minister of Rites, I believe that what Da Yintai said makes sense. Although His Majesty and the Emperor Emeritus are descendants of Emperor Chengzu, from whom did Emperor Chengzu inherit the throne? Naturally, it was Emperor Taizu. It was only because Emperor Jianwen lacked the ability and virtue that he abdicated in favor of Emperor Chengzu this time. Therefore, what Cao Ming said is not without merit. Besides, even if Cao Ming spoke inappropriately, why should he be sentenced to death?"

Although the Director of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices was only a seventh-rank official, he was in charge of conveying imperial edicts, bestowing titles, and issuing proclamations. He was respectfully addressed as the "Archangel," and his status was extremely high, far surpassing that of an ordinary seventh-rank official. This is why Gu Wenji dared to challenge Fan Lun.

Of course, both he and Fang Hongjing were members of Zhu's faction.

Wu Yuanhao, an official of the Ministry of Rites, stepped forward and said, “The Archangel speaks so lightly! What abdication? The throne was established by Emperor Chengzu! According to the Archangel, does Emperor Chengzu’s throne mean that Emperor Jianwen abdicated? Emperor Jianwen was not a legitimate ruler and was not the rightful heir to the throne. How could he have the right to abdicate?”

"Not so!" said Zhu Chenghao, the Director of the Imperial Observatory. "Judging from the current celestial phenomena, if the title of Emperor Jianwen is restored, it would actually be an auspicious sign for our dynasty!"

Liu Yuanzhen, a member of the Zhu faction and Chancellor of the Imperial Academy, also stepped forward: "The Great Black Bird's words make sense! I also study celestial phenomena and have discovered that the five planets are converging in the East Well constellation. This should be the auspicious omen that the Great Black Bird spoke of!"

Suddenly, Zhan Yi, a senior figure in the Zhejiang faction and Right Vice Censor-in-Chief, said, "The Grand Master is the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy. Why is he so convinced of celestial phenomena? The Great Black Bird is the Director of the Imperial Observatory. Does the Grand Master also oversee celestial phenomena?"

Liu Yuanzhen retorted sarcastically, "What, does the Junior Censor not believe it?"

Zhan Yi sneered, "Five planets aligning in the East Well? Grandmaster, that's a far-fetched interpretation. Why do I see 'a lunar eclipse in the Pleiades, resentment leading to disaster'?"

However, Zhan Yi's words provoked even fiercer rebuttals from Zhu's faction members. Some even said that he was spreading heresies, slandering the new dynasty, and was insane, and requested that he be dismissed from his position as Right Vice Censor-in-Chief.

For a time, Fan Lun and the others were suppressed.

Seeing the Zhejiang faction suffer a setback, officials from different factions, including the Chu faction, the Sanwu faction, and the Jiangyou faction, all chose to remain silent.

Only then, after Fan Lun and his cronies had their arrogance dampened, did Zhu Yin calmly and slowly speak up, saying, "Alright, stop arguing. This is the imperial court; we must maintain the demeanor of ministers."

The crowd immediately stopped attacking each other and looked at the Regent.

Zhu Yin said, "Let's put this matter aside for later discussion. Even if we were to talk about restoring the Jianwen Emperor's title, that's not the time for now. Right now, there are many crises and countless things to deal with. Stability must be the top priority. For now, let's focus on military matters and resolve the immediate crisis first."

Having achieved his goal of testing the court officials, he naturally knew when to stop.

Let's test the waters first. In the future, there will be more and more people advising to restore the Jianwen Emperor's title. Then, soon after, restoring the ancestral imperial title and even the temple name will be a natural outcome.

Zhu Yin stood up. "It's almost the Mid-Autumn Festival. According to the new holiday policy, officials and soldiers will have a day off. The Ministry of Revenue and local governments can purchase 'Chang'an Mooncakes' and distribute them to officials and clerks. These are the best mooncakes available right now, and they are both inexpensive and of good quality... Oh, and they'll be paid from the public accounts."

"From now on, the imperial court shall prepare all holiday gifts, such as mooncakes, and cooperate with reputable merchants. This is not only a benefit provided by the imperial court to its officials, but also to highlight the Chinese festivals; this is a matter of culture and education."

All the officials bowed and said, "Thank you, Grand Tutor."

Zhu Yin continued, “During the Mid-Autumn Festival in August, families across the land reunite to enjoy the beauty of the moon. However, soldiers in the army are separated from their loved ones and keep watch over their weapons for the sake of national stability, which is truly pitiful. The Grand General’s Office can coordinate with the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Revenue to allocate 60,000 taels of silver to exchange for 300,000 ‘Chang’an Moon’ mooncake vouchers, which can be given to the soldiers of the Beijing Garrison and the guard posts. These vouchers can then be exchanged for mooncake gift boxes in various regions.”

"The Ministry of Revenue allocated another 60,000 taels of silver to purchase 300,000 mooncake vouchers, which were then distributed to the chieftains and soldiers of various ethnic groups in Huguang, Chongqing, Liangguang, and Bozhou."

"In addition, the Ministry of Revenue will allocate another 100,000 taels of silver to provide mooncake vouchers to elderly people over seventy years old and widowed, orphaned and childless people over sixty years old."

"For all the above benefits, Chang'an Yue's branches in various places will first issue receipts and record them, and then reconcile the accounts with the Ministry of Revenue and submit them for reimbursement."

Minister of Revenue Li Tingji had no idea what the Chang'an Yue Trading Company was all about. He thought to himself: "A box of mooncakes costing two qian of silver? Is that really cheap? What kind of mooncake gift box is it?"
Although he disagreed with Zhu Yin's decision, he wouldn't refute the Regent's Grand Tutor just because the Ministry of Revenue allocated more than 200,000 taels of silver.

After the Jingnan Rebellion, eight tax supervisors in the south were arrested by Zhu Yin's men, and along with their silver ledgers, were taken to Nanjing. This resulted in the confiscation of twelve million taels of silver, a windfall for the Nanjing court!
The eight tax supervisors' years of extortion all benefited the Southern Dynasty. As a result, the Nanjing Ministry of Revenue suddenly became wealthy. These so-called welfare funds were nothing.

After Zhu Yin finished recounting this matter, he asked, "Who else has something to report?"

"I have something to report in person!" Duke Xu Xiaobai of Wei stepped forward and said.

Zhu Yin, having already grasped the situation, smiled and asked, "What matter does the Duke of Wei wish to report?"

Xu Xiaobai raised his official tablet. "I am engaged to Ms. Wu, and this has been reported to the Ministry of Rites. However, we still need the imperial court's approval before we can proceed with the marriage."

Upon hearing this, all the officials wore strange expressions.

Who doesn't know now that the so-called Wu woman is actually the Grand Tutor's adopted sister? Wasn't it this adopted sister who won over the Duke of Wei before?
Zhu Yin smiled and said, "Approved! The Ministry of Rites should issue the document immediately."

Fan Lun said in a deep voice, "The Ministry of Rites will comply."

Seeing that no one would submit any further memorials that day, Zhu Yin adjourned the court session.

After the court session ended, the sun had just risen. Officials returned to their respective offices to work, but Zhu Yin did not go to the Wenyuan Pavilion; instead, he went directly to the Grand Commander's Mansion.

The Grand Governor's Mansion was located in his Duke's Mansion.

Right now, military affairs are of course the most important.

As soon as Zhu Yin returned to the manor, Ning Caiwei said to him, "Little Tiger, Tiger Fang just received news that Toyotomi Hideyoshi is dead."

"Hideyoshi is dead?" Zhu Yin was stunned, unable to describe the feeling.

He couldn't help but feel a little lonely.

Toyotomi Hideyoshi died more than two years prematurely.

What will happen to Japan after this great man dies?
...

P.S.: I'm too busy today, that's all for now. Still, please vote with your monthly tickets...

(End of this chapter)