Ming Dynasty 1627

Chapter 44: The Results of the Confiscation are Out

"How's the confiscation of property going?"

Zhu Youjian turned to Wang Tiqian and Tian Ergeng.

Wang Tiqian glanced at Tian Ergeng, stepped forward, bowed, and said, "Reporting to Your Majesty."

“Since receiving the imperial decree on the 24th, this servant has joined forces with the Embroidered Uniform Guard to confiscate the property and arrest the traitorous eunuch Wei Zhongxian, Madam Ke, and their cronies.”

"The gold, silver, land deeds, real estate, antiques, calligraphy and paintings in his home have all been inventoried and cataloged, and the number is countless."

He paused, then raised his voice slightly.

"Through this investigation, we have come to realize his insatiable corruption, his harm to the country and its people, which is utterly outrageous! Your Majesty's wisdom and insight are truly a blessing for the Ming Dynasty and for all its people!"

Zhu Youjian remained noncommittal, simply extending his hand and saying, "Present the booklet."

"Yes."

Wang Tiqian responded, took out a thick booklet from his sleeve, held it with both hands, and had a eunuch present it to the emperor's desk.

Zhu Youjian took the booklet and casually flipped through it.

He glanced at it, and his eyebrows twitched almost imperceptibly.

The contents of the booklet were presented in tabular form.

Column by column, row by row, clear and concise.

Personal names, gold and silver, land, antiques... all categories are clearly displayed.

Zhu Youjian couldn't help but lift his gaze from the account book and glance at the two people below the steps out of the corner of his eye.

Wang Tiqian remained calm and composed, his head slightly bowed.

However, Tian Ergeng, who was standing next to him, was clearly a little nervous.

A strange feeling flashed through Zhu Youjian's mind.

He had drawn up this kind of form by hand only a few days ago when he asked Wang, Wei, and Tian to hand over the list of eunuchs.

But I never expected that Wang Tiqian would be able to use it here so quickly.

This flattery... feels pretty good.

No wonder he was able to hold the position of Directorate of Ceremonial for seven years, and no matter how the situation changed or how powerful Wei Zhongxian became, he remained steadfast.

He is a smart man.

Indeed, I like intelligent people.

Intelligent people are often useful; those who are sensible and afraid of death are the best.

Zhu Youjian's mind raced, but his face remained impassive. He merely raised his head slightly, and his gaze returned to the booklet.

He skipped over the complicated table of contents and turned directly to the page summarizing the gold and silver.

The first line is of Wei Zhongxian.

[Wei Zhongxian...confiscated gold and silver totaling 246,000 taels.]

Ok?
The mere mention of that first number caused Zhu Youjian's brow to furrow instantly.

Two hundred and forty-six thousand taels?
Wei Zhongxian, who wielded immense power and was known as the "Nine Thousand Years Old," only managed to confiscate this much?
This number is far from what he expected!

He raised his head and stared directly at Wang Tiqian.

Before he could even speak, Wang Tiqian seemed to have read his mind and preemptively said, "Your Majesty, do you feel that the amount of silver confiscated by Wei is too small?"

Zhu Youjian remained silent, only nodding, his gaze carrying an even stronger scrutinizing intent.

Wang Tiqian met Zhu Youjian's gaze without flinching: "Your Majesty, when Commander Tian and I first investigated, we had the same doubts as Your Majesty. Only after extensive investigation and interrogation of the steward and servants did we understand the truth."

"Since Wei took power in the third year of the Tianqi reign, he has indeed been corrupt and lawless, accumulating a huge fortune. However, he also spends money like water."

"Firstly, when the late emperor was alive, in order to consolidate his favor, Wei the rebel repeatedly donated imperial funds to help with border defense, totaling no less than tens of thousands of taels."

"Secondly, he was fond of luxury and extravagance. Every time he went on an inspection tour, the procession stretched for miles, with banners waving and a large retinue of attendants, which cost a great deal of money."

"Thirdly, he was a devout Buddhist and built temples and sculpted many golden statues in and around the capital. He would often donate tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of taels of silver."

"Fourth, in order to gain a good reputation, he also donated funds to build bridges and roads near the capital to show his kindness."

"After such repeated expenditures, when we searched the mansion, we found that there were indeed only 246,000 taels of silver left."

Wang Tiqian's voice was steady and clear, and every word he spoke was reasonable and well-founded, as if he were stating a fact that couldn't be more obvious.

Zhu Youjian looked at him quietly, without saying a word.

Wang Tiqian looked back at him calmly, his eyes clear, without the slightest hint of guilt or evasion.

Time passed by minute by minute.

Tian Ergeng, standing next to him, felt like he was suffocating.

Just as the oppressive atmosphere reached its peak, a smile suddenly bloomed on Zhu Youjian's face.

"Ha ha……"

He laughed, breaking the silence in the hall.

"Tigan, you did a great job."

He said gently, “Your investigation is so thorough, which shows your loyalty and competence. From now on, you no longer need to refer to yourself as a slave in front of me; you may refer to yourself as an inner minister.”

This sudden praise and favor stunned Wang Tiqian.

He immediately knelt down and kowtowed, saying, "Your Majesty flatters me! I am Your Majesty's servant and would never dare to overstep my bounds. I am truly unworthy of the title of 'Eunuch'!"

Zhu Youjian waved his hand, signaling him to rise.

In his heart, he didn't completely believe Wang Tiqian's words.

It is a fact that Wei Zhongxian spent a lot of money.

But the exact extent of the expenses is probably unclear. However, he believed that Wang Tiqian was a smart man.

A smart person should not, and could not, deceive themselves in such a clumsy way at this critical juncture.

Even if he were to be greedy, he would never target Wei Zhongxian, the most conspicuous and eye-catching piece of fat.

Of course, the most crucial thing is...

Even if Wang Tiqian really did embezzle, what can I do to him now?

Having just ascended the throne, and with his entire inner circle of officials being utterly incompetent, he had no choice but to rely on their strengths.

Until he could build up his own trusted inner circle, he had no choice but to employ them.

Even if it's only temporary.

"Get up," Zhu Youjian said calmly.

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Wang Tiqian obediently stood up.

He seemed to see through Zhu Youjian's thoughts and continued:
"Your Majesty, although Wei the rebel does not have much cash, his land and real estate are extremely impressive."

“In addition to the 4,100 hectares of imperial estates bestowed by the late emperor, we have also seized more than 1,600 hectares of fertile land that he had annexed in various parts of the capital region.”

"In addition, I have sent someone on horseback to his hometown of Hejian Suning to investigate the family's land holdings. I expect to receive a report soon."

"Yes, very well done." Zhu Youjian nodded approvingly. "Make sure to investigate thoroughly and leave nothing out."

"The slaves obey the order."

Zhu Youjian's gaze returned to the account books, and he continued to scan them.

[Li Yongzhen...confiscated gold and silver totaling 528,000 taels.]

Upon seeing this number, Zhu Youjian's pupils contracted sharply.

Li Yongzhen?
A mere eunuch in charge of the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs was more than twice as greedy as Wei Zhongxian himself.
Damn! No wonder the original owner's Prince Xin's mansion hadn't been repaired even after two years!
You're really bold!
Zhu Youjian continued scanning the remaining list.

[Cui Chengxiu... 84,000 taels.]

Zhou Yingqiu...72,000 taels.

Further down the list are the henchmen like Xu Xianchun, Cui Yingyuan, and Ni Wenhuan, whose confiscated silver ranges from six thousand to ten thousand.

At the end of the booklet, Wang Tiqian thoughtfully summarized the total amount in red ink.

—One million sixty-seven thousand four hundred and sixty taels.

1.06 million...

A hint of disappointment flashed in Zhu Youjian's eyes.

Too little.

It’s really too little.

In his initial plan, eliminating the eunuch faction would surely yield three to five million taels of silver.

But I didn't expect it to be so few.

The military pay in Liaodong, the military pay in the Nine Garrisons, and the disaster relief in the Northwest—which of these isn't a hole in the millions?

This amount of money, if scattered, wouldn't even make a ripple.

The difference in amounts is so huge that it cannot be explained simply by Wei Zhongxian's extravagant spending.

Did I kill too few people?
The thought flashed through Zhu Youjian's mind, but he immediately dismissed it.

In order to stabilize the political situation and ensure a smooth transition.

In order to prevent the Donglin Party members from eroding his power under the banner of overthrowing eunuchs after their reinstatement, he had to control the scope of his crackdown.

In some ways, the so-called eunuch faction is actually the most useful today.

But it's always good to have more money. We still need to find a way to get them to return the money without affecting the political landscape.

What should we do?

His fingers tapped lightly on the imperial desk unconsciously, making a soft "tap, tap, tap" sound.

Just then, Wang Tiqian suddenly knelt down and prostrated himself on the ground, saying, "Your Majesty, I am guilty."

This action instantly stunned the other three people in the hall.

Zhu Youjian paused, then opened his eyes.

He instantly understood what Wang Tiqian wanted to do.

"Hmm? What crime has been committed against the body?"

　There are many rumors circulating online about Wei Zhongxian's house being confiscated.

　　The most outrageous thing I've ever seen is that there were tens of millions of taels of silver, but they were all embezzled by civil officials.

　　Shouldn't these people consider how much M0 currency there was during the Ming Dynasty?

　　The data I listed supports several aspects of evidence:
　　-
　　The amount of money confiscated from the homes of eunuchs comes from the "Chongzhen Changbian" (a historical record of

　　-
　　Wei Zhongxian's various expenses, according to the "Veritable Records of Emperor Xizong of Ming" and "Yujing Xintan," included donations of money, incense burning, and road repairs.

　　I'm not trying to whitewash him; everyone is complex. As Tianqi's front man, he certainly spread corruption throughout the court.

　　But he did do some good deeds (even though he did more bad deeds at the same time).

　　-
　　In addition, I used a corruption coefficient of 1.2 to expand the amount of money confiscated, believing that cross-confiscating by two teams, plus threatening the two former leaders with their lives to confiscate the property of their own subordinates, might reduce the amount of embezzlement.

　　-
　　Finally, a review of the imperial treasury expenditures in the months following Chongzhen's handling of Wei Zhongxian reveals that he did not confiscate a particularly large amount of money.

　　-
　　I compiled a complete list of the confiscated property into a 25-line table, which is included in the "Detailed Research on the Confiscated Property List of the Eunuch Party" section under the work's related information. It includes the amount of each confiscated item, the historical source, and some of the amounts are my estimations, all of which are noted.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)