Ming Dynasty 1627

Chapter 141: The most important affairs of the state are sacrifice and war
A chilling wind carried a sense of desolation, causing the long white banners hanging from the eaves of the palace to flutter.

Zhu Youjian, dressed in heavy white mourning clothes, stood quietly outside the Jiyan Hall.

This was the first time since his ascension to the throne that he had missed the morning review of the Yongwei Battalion.

Today, he is to lead the procession to the coffin of his elder brother, the Tianqi Emperor Zhu Youxiao.

The elaborate and lengthy initiation ceremony officially began in solemn silence.

The first step is to lay the foundation.

The high-pitched voice of the inner guide echoed through the silent palace, each word tinged with a formulaic sorrow.

Zhu Youjian followed the guide to the altar, behind him were a group of nobles and officials, including Duke of Yingguo Zhang Weixian and Marquis of Baoding Liang Shixun, all dressed in mourning clothes and standing with their heads bowed.

"Praise four times—"

Upon hearing the sound, Zhu Youjian immediately bowed and kowtowed, his movements impeccably precise.

"Offering silk—"

"Offer wine—"

"Read the blessing—"

He watched as the eunuchs presented the sacrificial silks and wine cups, and listened as the officiant recited the eulogy in a melodious and rhythmic tone, his mind clear and serene.

His expression was sorrowful, his eyes were red, and every detail perfectly captured the image of a younger brother grieving the loss of his elder brother.

He saw among the officials below that some were genuinely weeping, some were expressionless, and some had hidden thoughts unknown to anyone beneath their lowered eyelids.

"Let us mourn!"

At the master of ceremonies' command, suppressed sobs instantly filled the entire hall.

"Stop the mourning!"

The crying stopped abruptly, and everything was brought under control.

After the opening ceremony, the attendants filed in, quickly removed the curtains and offerings, and wiped the enormous coffin clean.

Outside the palace, an even larger dragon carriage, like a silent behemoth, was slowly pushed down the steps.

Next came the second memorial service, the ancestral memorial service.

Everything proceeds as before.

After the ceremony, a eunuch hurried to the coffin, knelt down abruptly, and loudly requested:

"Please proceed with the hearse!"

The sound echoed through the palace.

Other eunuchs carefully carried the posthumous title, imperial seal, sacred silk, and memorial banner—symbols of the Tianqi Emperor's posthumous honors—out through the central gate of the main hall and placed them one by one into their respective carriages.

everything's ready.

The officials took a deep breath and together lifted the heavy coffin slowly.

The eunuchs, holding huge feathered banners, stood on either side, shielding the coffin like wings and escorting it down the steps.

Another eunuch knelt before the imperial carriage and loudly proclaimed, "Please allow the coffin to be placed on the imperial carriage!"

The coffin was placed securely on the dragon carriage and covered with a magnificent colorful curtain.

Zhu Youjian led his concubines and palace attendants, following the imperial carriage, silently passing through palace gates, and finally stopped inside the Meridian Gate.

This is the boundary between the palace and the outside world, and also the place where he and Zhu Youxiao—the previous master of the Forbidden City—finally bid farewell.

Inside the palace gates, the third and final memorial service of the day was held – the sending off of the deceased.

Everything proceeds as before.

After the ceremony, Zhu Youjian stood up straight and bowed deeply one last time to the heavy, magnificent coffin that bore witness to the end of an era.

When he straightened up again, his face was covered in tears.

He looked at the twenty-four ministers, including Huang Lijie, Shi Fenglai, and Li Guopu, who were waiting outside the Meridian Gate, his voice hoarse, tinged with just the right amount of sobs.

"Your Majesty... I entrust this to you all, my beloved ministers."

Huang Lijie led the assembled officials to kneel on the ground, shouting, "Your Majesty, please accept our condolences. We will certainly live up to your expectations!"

Zhu Youjian remained silent, simply standing there and watching quietly.

Following protocol, a palace attendant said, "Your Majesty, please return to the palace."

Zhu Youjian ignored it and just watched quietly.

The imperial carriage set off, and the massive chariot, surrounded by hundreds of people, slowly and heavily drove out of the Meridian Gate, merging into the white sea of ​​civil and military officials and imperial guards.

Thousands of guards will be deployed from here all the way to Daming Gate, then turn into Desheng Gate from inside the city, and finally head to the Thirteen Tombs in the north of Beijing.

Paper money flew everywhere, and cries shook the heavens. Residents of the capital wore mourning clothes and knelt down on both sides of the road, their grief filling the air.

The temple bells throughout the capital rang out one after another, their booming sounds never ceasing.

Zhu Youjian stood there until the vast procession completely disappeared from sight.

The sorrow on his face remained, but his eyes held only a deep, abyss-like calm.

Zhu Youjian glanced one last time in the direction the imperial carriage had gone, then abruptly flicked his sleeve and turned back to the palace.

……

Qianqing Palace.

Zhu Youjian sat alone behind his desk, momentarily lost in thought.

From this day forward, this vast and empty Forbidden City will truly have only one emperor.

He will use the reign title "Yongchang" to guide this old dynasty as it stumbles forward.

His guidance will begin in this Qianqing Palace, and with each and every memorial presented before him.

These memorials will fly to every prefecture and county in the land like snowflakes.

On that vast land, Ming Dynasty civil officials at all levels will carry out, misinterpret, neglect, and even exploit his orders...

And all the merits and demerits, rises and falls, survival and destruction of the world ultimately belong to him alone.

Such is the emperor's destiny, and it has always been so.

Zhu Youjian gently shook his head, clearing his mind of those chaotic thoughts. He took a deep breath and said in a deep voice:

"Gao Banban, present today's memorial."

Gao Shiming bowed and agreed. Soon, the first Class A memorial was presented to the emperor.

[Report on the Investigation of the Shandong Floods - by Jin Lan, Imperial Censor of Shandong Circuit]

Zhu Youjian unfolded the memorial and began to read it carefully.

In his memorial, Jin Lan said that after arriving in Shandong, he dared not slack off and inspected all sides without stopping. Now he had only inspected the vicinity of Jinan Prefecture, and what he saw was shocking.

Since June, continuous heavy rains have caused the rivers along the river to swell, flooding farmland and destroying houses.

Fortunately, the wheat had already been stored in the granary by the time of the torrential rain, so the people were not completely starving.

However, the summer-sown beans and spring-sown cotton were both submerged in floodwaters, resulting in a complete crop failure.

The cabinet's proposed opinion was simple: Jinan Prefecture could be exempted from 50% of its taxes next summer, with the remainder collected in silver. The exempted portion would be shared and supplemented by the other unaffected prefectures and counties.

"Isn't it the staple food that's being flooded...?"

Zhu Youjian, who had never farmed in his previous life, couldn't help but rub his face.

He silently decided that he must include agricultural knowledge in his study plan for the next month.

It's essential to understand high-yield crops like potatoes, sweet potatoes, and corn.

But he also needed to understand the mainstream crops of the Ming Dynasty.

When to sow cotton, hemp, beans, wheat, and rice, when to harvest them, and what the yield per acre is—these are all essential common sense.

Otherwise, he, coming from a later generation, might very well have made the mistake of "Why don't they eat meat porridge?"

I'll have the Directorate of Ceremonial compile a chronology of agricultural seasons for the whole country, and then find a few real old farmers to be our teachers.

Then he personally cultivated a type of land in the palace, which later happened to develop into experimental fields and an agricultural college.

I wonder if Emperors Tianqi and Chongzhen ever personally farmed the land?

There should be...right? Given the state of the nation, they should be studying diligently, right?
Zhu Youjian shook his head and continued reading.

The second half of the memorial abruptly shifted, listing ten major crimes committed by Li Jingbai, the governor of Shandong.

First, the government was incompetent and disaster relief was slow; second, the treasury was empty and there was no grain to use; third, corruption and bribery were rampant, and wealthy gentry were allowed to evade taxes and levies, while the burden was shifted onto the common people...

Zhu Youjian frowned deeply.

This is so classic! Isn't this the most common scene in Qing Dynasty dramas of later generations?

A major disaster struck the region, but officials covered it up. An imperial envoy was ordered to investigate, uncovering the truth. The emperor was furious, the corrupt officials were executed, and the people were deeply grateful.

Oh no, Qing Dynasty dramas must feature the emperor traveling incognito.

If the emperor doesn't go on tours, there won't be enough exciting moments to make a TV series.

but……

Now that Jinlan has handed him the ladder, should he take advantage of it and "get angry"?
Zhu Youjian pondered for a moment, closed the memorial, handed it to Gao Shiming, and issued a series of orders in a calm tone:

"An imperial edict was issued to Censor Jin Lan, promoting him to Shandong Circuit Inspector, to investigate the case of Li Jingbai."

"Take all the current state-of-the-art documents to him and have him report them in the style of state-of-the-art documents, instead of being so vague."

"Let Tian Ergeng select two banners of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. One banner will be under the command of Jinlan, and the other banner will conduct its own investigations and report directly to me."

"I hereby issue an oral edict to Li Jingbai, the governor of Shandong, instructing him to submit a memorial to defend himself, and at the same time to focus on disaster relief, expedite replanting, and minimize losses."

"Finally, grant them radio access. After the Beijing-Dengfeng line opens next month, report the results through the radio." Gao Shiming noted everything down and bowed to accept the order.

Zhu Youjian sighed softly.

He couldn't trust Li Jingbai, so how could he fully trust this Jinlan?

Even Lu Xiang-sheng had his own school of thought and hometown.
Let them bite each other; only then can we see more of the truth.

He picked up the second memorial, and just as he was about to open it, he suddenly felt that something was wrong.

He suddenly stood up, snatched Jinlan's memorial, and reopened it.

After a moment of looking around, his gaze finally settled on the eight words: "caused the river water along the banks to swell rapidly."

Coastline?

What bank? What river?

"Gao Banban!" Zhu Youjian raised his head, his eyes sharp. "Bring me the memorial from Li Jingbai reporting the disaster situation! Also, find me a map of Shandong!"

Soon, the map and the memorial were delivered.

Li Jingbai's initial report listed more than thirty prefectures and counties, only stating that torrential rains had caused widespread flooding.

Zhu Youjian disliked this elaborate writing style at the time, but he didn't think much of it, assuming that this was how people in the Ming Dynasty were.

But Jinlan's words "along the shore" were like a lightning bolt, cleaving through the fog.

Zhu Youjian picked up a vermilion pen and began to mark points on the map.

Licheng, Zhangqiu, Changqing, Qidong, Jiyang, Qihe...

The affected locations were marked one by one, and their distribution surprisingly formed a clear line!
And right next to this line is a winding river.

(Attached image: Distribution of flood-affected areas in Shandong)
"What is the name of this river?" Zhu Youjian asked, pointing to the map.

Gao Shiming leaned closer to take a look, then cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, this river is called the Daqing River."

"After passing Kaifeng, the river splits into two streams, one of which flows into the Huai River, and the other flows into the sea through this river."

"Therefore, the Daqing River is silted up and the riverbed is very high, so it is indeed prone to flooding."

Zhu Youjian frowned.

Was it truly an unintentional mistake...?

Or was it intentionally concealed?
Don't you want to manage the river? Or do you not think managing the river is an important matter?
Neither Jinlan nor Li Jingbai mentioned this matter?
Moreover, and more importantly, his memories of the late Ming Dynasty include a severe drought in Shaanxi, but he doesn't recall any major floods in Shandong.

Could it be that it's not a big problem?

For a moment, Zhu Youjian even felt that he was being too paranoid.

He stroked his chin and began searching his mind for memories belonging to Emperor Chongzhen.

Very good... a blank page. This old man doesn't know anything about this either.

However, the former old man knew something else.

Zhu Youjian asked,
Does the Yongding River in the capital region also frequently flood?

“Indeed, Your Majesty,” Gao Shiming replied, “The Yongding River is not properly dredged, and it floods every spring and summer when there are heavy rains.”

Zhu Youjian nodded, understanding in his heart.

—Alright, geography, river courses, and water conservancy construction should also be included in the curriculum.

You talk about these things every day, why don't you talk about them?
If you talk about these things, I will definitely listen attentively!

Zhu Youjian handed the memorial back again, regaining his composure: "It's alright. Draft the decree as I just said."

Although Gao Shiming had doubts, he dared not ask any further questions and accepted the order to leave.

The next few things were much less complex, but just as important.

[A Petition for Retirement - by Shi Fenglai]

Second Grand Secretary Shih Feng-lai wants to retire.

In his memorial, he said that he was old and frail, and his eyesight was failing. He even cited an example: Jinlan's memorial arrived on September 17th, but he forgot to report it after reading it, and only remembered it today.

Zhu Youjian sneered.

Is he trying to jump ship? But fearing he'll suffer the same fate as Zhang Ruitu, who was dismissed, he's deliberately creating a weakness for himself?

Was it because he saw that the Donglin Party members were about to enter the capital and didn't want to be purged for being labeled a "eunuch party member," or was it because his actions in the past few days made this old fox sense danger and want to protect himself?

Whatever.

It's time to replace a 64-year-old man.

"Gao Banban, draft some polite words and go through the process of three invitations and three refusals," Zhu Youjian instructed casually.

[Memorial Requesting the Relocation of Troops to Datong – Sun Chengzong]

This is a secret letter from Tongzhou.

Zhu Youjian's heart skipped a beat.

He quickly unfolded the scroll, revealing Sun Chengzong's vigorous and powerful handwriting.

Six thousand cavalrymen have been assembled in Tongzhou, and guides from familiar tribes outside the Great Wall have been found.

Latest military intelligence: Bobu has gathered troops at Xianning Haizi, and various tribes of the right wing of Mongolia have responded one after another, with many of the thirty-six families of Doyan also participating.

The various tribes were in high spirits, ready to fight the aggressive Tiger Chieftain to the death.

At the same time, he also discreetly and somewhat humbly conveyed, through the military generals outside the pass, some requests for the Ming army to participate in this opening ceremony.

Sun Chengzong requested that the 6,000 cavalry be immediately moved to Datong to await an opportunity to fight.

Meanwhile, he himself was about to depart for Shanhaiguan, and the subsequent matters concerning southern Mongolia would be reported directly to the emperor by General Ma Shilong.

Zhu Youjian took a deep breath and tried his best to calm himself down.

The most important matters of state are war and sacrifice, and today he has encountered both of them.

Is it a coincidence, or destiny?

He turned to Gao Shiming and said, "Immediately pass down the order! Have Tian Ergeng prioritize laying the radio station to Datong, sparing no expense or manpower. Forget about finding the optimal route; just run multiple routes in parallel, even if there's some redundancy."

"According to the order!"

Gao Shiming was still perceptive enough to notice the emperor's anxiety. He dared not be negligent and immediately turned around to instruct the eunuch.

……

The memorial was quickly processed, and Zhu Youjian stretched and looked at Wang Tiqian, who had been standing by his side.

"How's it going?"

Wang Tiqian then stepped forward, bowed, and replied:

"Your Majesty, about a quarter of the officers who took the exam yesterday sent messengers out after leaving the palace, all heading to the nine border regions."

Zhu Youjian nodded, his face expressionless: "I understand."

Loyalty cannot be bought with empty promises.

There must be continuous positive incentives and precise negative punishments.

All three of Wanli's great campaigns were promised to result in the ennoblement of marquises, but none of them were actually granted such titles.

The rewards for meritorious service in Liaodong during the Tianqi era are still in effect.

Yesterday's rewards to dukes and marquises were merely an incentive given the emperor's personal witness.

He would need to employ further methods to truly drive the world mad.

So, the fact that only a quarter of the people chose to notify their original commanders was far below his expectations.

Wang Tiqian continued, "Yesterday, both the Shandong Guild Hall and the Shanxi Guild Hall held welcome-back ceremonies, with dozens of people attending each, including those who had been reinstated and returned to Beijing and those who were currently in office."

He handed over a slip of paper. "This is the list of the main officials attending the meeting."

Zhu Youjian took it, glanced at it briefly,
People from Shanxi: Han Kuang, Sun Chuanting...

Shandong natives: Liu Hongxun, Bi Ziyan, Guo Yunhou, Xue Fengxiang...

His expression remained calm: "I understand."

Place of origin, mentorship, shared interests, relatives and friends... there are as many ways for people to form cliques as there are ways to connect.

This is normal.

Wang Tiqian added, "As for the nobles, the Marquis of Baoding held a grand banquet yesterday under the pretext of celebrating his mother's birthday, but... not many people responded."

Zhu Youjian's eye twitched almost imperceptibly, but he still spoke, "I understand."

Marquis Liang Shixun of Baoding was in charge of the Beijing Garrison.

It's normal for him to throw a birthday banquet; what's abnormal is that nobody goes!

Where did these people get their information?

In the palace? Was Huo Weihua and his team careless? Was this just my guess?
So they knew about the Beijing garrison...

Or did they also learn about his plan to reorganize Beizhili?
"The rest is as usual," Wang Tiqian concluded.

Zhu Youjian patted him on the shoulder: "Well done, keep an eye on it."

Then, he turned to Gao Shiming: "Have the announcements for tomorrow's lectures been sent out?"

Gao Shiming nodded and said, "Your Majesty, we have notified the Six Ministries and Nine Ministers, the Vice Ministers of each ministry, the Six Offices of Censors, all members of the Hanlin Academy, and the nobles in the capital. All officials who have been reinstated and were previously of the fourth rank or above will attend the lecture at the Hall of Supreme Harmony tomorrow."

Zhu Youjian's gaze was deep and he said nothing more.

—Speak every day, speak every day. Since you can't speak, then let me speak!

(End of this chapter)