Transmigrating to the Chongzhen Emperor of the Ming Dynasty: Becoming a Great Emperor Through Idlene

Qianqing Palace.

Wen Tiren, along with the cabinet and the main officials of the six ministries, knelt outside the warm pavilion.

They've been kneeling for fifteen minutes, and there's still no summons from inside.

Hou Xun's knees were already aching. He was fifty-three years old and used to a life of luxury; he had never suffered like this before. But since the Grand Secretary was kneeling upright, he dared not move.

Finally, Wang Chengen came out.

"His Majesty has decreed, proclaim it."

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, struggled to their feet, straightened their official robes, and filed in.

Inside the warm pavilion was a heated floor with an underfloor stove. Emperor Chongzhen lay on a huanghuali wood recliner, covered with a fox fur rug, his eyes closed, seemingly asleep. A bowl of medicine, no longer warm, sat on a small table beside him.

"Your Majesty, we pay our respects." Wen Tiren led the way by kneeling down.

Emperor Chongzhen slowly opened his eyes, his gaze somewhat dazed, as if he had just woken up. He glanced around at the kneeling ministers and waved his hand weakly: "Get up, all of you. Mr. Wen, is there anything I can help you with?"

Wen Tiren bowed and reported, "Your Majesty, the Jurchens have reached Sanhe and are less than a hundred li from the capital. We have discussed this for several days and devised a plan to deal with the enemy, which we are here to report today."

"Oh... then tell me." Chongzhen closed his eyes again.

After taking a deep breath, Wen Tiren began his report: "First, 20,000 troops from the Beijing garrison have been mobilized to defend the Tongzhou and Zhangjiawan areas. Second, an urgent order has been issued for Xuanfu, Datong, and Shanxi garrisons to each send 3,000 troops as reinforcements. Third, 'pacification bonds' have been issued to raise military funds, and 118,000 taels have already been raised. In addition... 200,000 taels have been temporarily diverted from the construction of the three main halls for emergency use..."

He recounted each and every matter in great detail. Emperor Chongzhen would sometimes respond with an "Mm" to indicate that he was listening.

After Wen Tiren finished speaking, the warm pavilion fell silent. Everyone looked at the emperor, awaiting his instructions.

Emperor Chongzhen slowly opened his eyes, gazed at the caisson ceiling above him for a long time, and then slowly said, "You... are the pillars of the nation."

Wen Tiren was overjoyed.

But the emperor's next words made his heart sink again.

"The strategy for defending against the enemy that we discussed... is certainly good." Chongzhen's voice was very soft, as if he were talking in his sleep: "You should act according to circumstances... as long as... as long as the renovation of the three main halls is not delayed..."

He paused for a moment, as if thinking about the words.

"I...have no objection."

After saying that, he closed his eyes again.

The warm room was eerily silent.

Wen Tiren opened his mouth as if to speak, but no words came out. He had prepared a long speech and various countermeasures, and was prepared to persuade the emperor to agree to the misappropriation of project funds... but the emperor only said "no objection" and dismissed everything.

"Your Majesty..." he asked, forcing a smile, "What about the misappropriation of funds for the construction of the three main halls...?"

"Hmm?" Chongzhen opened his eyes again, his gaze blank. "What misappropriation?"

"It means... temporarily diverting 200,000 taels from the 800,000 taels of project funds for military expenses..."

"Oh." Chongzhen nodded. "You... handle it as you see fit. As long as the project isn't delayed... that's fine."

That same phrase again.

Wen Tiren was speechless. He looked at the young emperor lying on the chair, his face pale and his eyes vacant, and suddenly felt a pang of sorrow in his heart.

Is this the emperor of the Ming Dynasty?

Is this the emperor of the Ming Dynasty? Is this the monarch they serve? With the nation in peril, what he cares about is... the construction of the three main halls?

"Your subject... obeys the decree," Wen Tiren said with difficulty.

"If there's nothing else... you may leave." Emperor Chongzhen waved his hand. "I'm tired."

"We take our leave."

Everyone bowed and withdrew. After leaving the Qianqing Palace, Hou Xun muttered a complaint under his breath, "What kind of mess is this! We've been running around doing all this, and the Emperor..."

"Watch your words!" Wen Tiren said sternly, his own expression turning grim.

They returned to Wenyuan Pavilion, closed the door, and looked at each other in bewilderment.

"What should we do now?" Liu Zunxian asked. "Although His Majesty said he had 'no objection,' he didn't explicitly approve the misappropriation of project funds. What if they investigate later..."

"We can't worry about that now," Wen Tiren said through gritted teeth. "Let's use the money first and get through this crisis. If they really come to the fore later, I'll take responsibility."

Although he said that, he was still somewhat uneasy. The emperor's attitude today was very unusual, not because he was incompetent, but because... he didn't care. It was as if the Ming Dynasty and the safety of the capital had nothing to do with him.

"Grand Secretary, do you think His Majesty is...?" Min Hongxue hesitated, wanting to say something but stopping himself.

"What is it?"

"Is he... really delirious from illness?" Min Hongxue lowered his voice and said, "It's said that after the Emperor fell into the water, his mind became unclear. His condition fluctuates, sometimes he's fine, sometimes he can't even tell who's who..."

They exchanged glances. They had heard the rumor before, but had never taken it seriously. But what they saw with their own eyes today…

"Stop discussing things that shouldn't be discussed," Wen Tiren said sternly. "Everyone, keep to your duties. Minister Zhang, the Beijing garrison must leave the city today. Minister Hou, the debts for suppressing the enemy will begin to be issued tomorrow. Minister Liu, has the armory been inventoried?"

"They're still...still counting."

"Hurry!" Wen Tiren slammed his hand on the table. "The Jurchens won't wait for us."

After everyone left, Wen Tiren sat alone in the Wenyuan Pavilion, gazing at the gray sky outside the window.

He felt very tired. Not physically, but mentally.

The emperor neglects his duties, court officials harbor their own ulterior motives, and the Jurchen army is at the gates of the city... How did the Ming Dynasty become like this?

He recalled the time when he first passed the imperial examination, when he was full of enthusiasm and wanted to become a loyal and virtuous minister. However, after thirty years of struggling in the officialdom, he learned how to scheme, how to manipulate, and how to survive in the cracks.

But when I actually went on stage to perform, I realized... it was actually quite difficult.

"Your Excellency, the Grand Secretary." A palace attendant quietly entered and whispered, "News has come from the palace that His Majesty only ate a small half bowl of porridge at noon today, and he also summoned the imperial physician."

Wen Tiren nodded without saying anything.

Perhaps His Majesty is truly seriously ill.

Maybe... this is for the best. At least, he can act freely now.

"Prepare pen and ink," he ordered. "I need to write a personal letter to the Governor-General of Xuanfu and Datong and the Governor of Shanxi. If the reinforcements arrive a day early, I will promote them by one rank. If they are a day late... they will be punished according to military law."

"Yes."

Wen Tiren spread out the paper and picked up his pen.

The pen was heavy, but he had to write.

Because he is the Grand Secretary.

Because Beijing cannot be breached.

Because... he didn't want to be a minister of a fallen nation.

Outside the window, on the tenth day of the second lunar month, Beijing was shrouded in dark clouds.

After the officials left, Chongzhen got up and went to the window, looking at the sky in the east that was gradually turning white.

When Wang Chengen brought in the hot ginseng soup, this was the scene he saw. The young emperor, wearing an outer robe, stood by the window, a thin layer of morning dew clinging to his shoulders.

"Your Majesty, it's time to rest," Wang Chengen advised softly. "It's almost dawn."

Emperor Chongzhen did not turn around: "Wang Banban, is that forty thousand taels... safe?"

Wang Chengen's heart tightened. He knew what His Majesty was asking.

It wasn't from the Ministry of Revenue's accounts, nor from the funds of the three main halls; it was a sum of silver that had been secretly transferred from the Inner Treasury, a sum known only to the two of them.

"This servant is about to report back." Wang Chengen put down the ginseng soup, took a few steps closer, and lowered his voice: "That 40,000 taels was taken from the 'fur silver' in the Inner Treasury. That was the silver coin for furs accumulated over the generations. The accounts were already vague, and it hadn't been counted since the Wanli era. No one has ever questioned it."

Emperor Chongzhen nodded: "Is the 200,000 taels received by the Ministry of Works any shortfall?"

"No," Wang Chengen said. "They were all paid in full. The 100,000 taels for January and the 100,000 taels for February were all paid in full. This 40,000 taels was scraped together by me from the 'leather silver' fund, so it's nothing."

"That's good." Chongzhen looked out the window, his voice soft: "This 40,000 taels is more important than that 200,000 taels..."

Wang Chengen did not understand the deeper meaning of these words, but he knew that every word His Majesty spoke carried weight.

"The bank..."

"This servant will personally oversee it," Wang Chengen said. "Only this servant and the bank manager have the key. Every transaction is recorded in a secret ledger using the 'Arabic numerals' taught by His Majesty, which no one else can understand."

Emperor Chongzhen finally turned around, took the ginseng soup, and slowly drank a sip.

Outside the window, the first ray of sunlight pierced through the palace walls and shone into the warm chamber of the Qianqing Palace. Emperor Chongzhen squinted, watching that ray of light.