Chapter 34: Fishing in troubled waters and stirring up the situation
June fourteenth.

In front of Chongwenmen, a large group of people gathered, preparing to go to Tianshou Mountain to select a site for the former emperor's mausoleum.

The Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Works arrived one after another.

At this time, Zhang Juzheng was secretly meeting with Zhang Siwei in a quiet room not far away.

"I have discussed this with Feng Bao. When Yuan Fu retires, Lü Diaoyang will have other jobs. By then, you will be in charge of the Ministry of Rites and be the editor of the Records of Emperor Sejong."

Zhang Juzheng spoke to Zhang Siwei with his back to him, while looking through the window towards Chongwenmen not far away.

Zhang Siwei was still one step away from being admitted to the Cabinet. As the Minister of Rites, he presided over the compilation of the Veritable Records of Emperor Sejong, thus completing the last step to enter the Cabinet.

After the new era name is changed next year, he will be able to join the cabinet.

These were all agreed upon before, and now they were just confirmed with Feng Bao to let Zhang Siwei feel at ease.

Zhang Siwei stood behind Zhang Juzheng and asked hesitantly, "Sir, are you really going to Tianshou Mountain?"

The fulfillment of the promises was based on Gao Gong's resignation.

It was Zhang Siwei who advised Gao Gong to send Zhang Juzheng away, but now the situation has changed and this move has become a self-defeating move.

Zhang Juzheng was stabbed to Tianshou Mountain, and the cabinet was left without a person to control the situation. If Gao Gong turned the tables...

Given Gao Gong's temperament, those who turned against him would not have a good ending.

Zhang Juzheng turned around and said comfortingly: "It's okay, the overall situation has been decided."

"The Prime Minister is deeply hated by Empress Dowager Li. As long as the Prime Minister cannot work together with the court officials, he will have no choice but to retire."

This is very clear.

Just like Yang Tinghe during the Great Ceremony Debate, as long as the imperial power has the support of court officials, even if it is weaker, the Prime Minister has to retire.

Gao Gong only thought that the court officials were of the same mind as him, which was why he dared to be so strong now.

Zhang Siwei was still a little worried: "I haven't seen any memorials from the Prime Minister sent in these few days."

The thing about tacit understanding is that people may cheat.

Zhang Juzheng shook his head and said, "Gao Yi and I submitted our retirement petitions yesterday. The Prime Minister can't delay it any longer."

"If you don't retire, then you are clinging to power."

Gao Gong would not be so stupid.

If someone is accused of clinging to power, the public opinion about him will be no less than that of Feng Bao now.

Although Empress Dowager Li changed her mind for some unknown reason, she was concerned about the stability of the court and wanted Gao Gong to retire with dignity.

But this is the victor's tolerance, not intentional appeasement.

If Gao Gong did not know what was good for him and was still clinging to power, he would no longer be treated with dignity.

This is the benefit of connecting with the inner court, spying on the emperor's mind, anticipating the enemy's moves, and naturally being confident.

Zhang Siwei felt relieved only after he heard the hint and confidence in the words.

Finally he promised: "My uncle will come to Beijing next year."

This is a safe bet. He must enter the cabinet himself before he will allow Wang Chonggu to come to Beijing.

If Zhang Juzheng turns against him later, the Jin Party will be ready to let the dogs loose.

Zhang Juzheng nodded, indicating that he accepted what was said.

I looked up and it was almost time.

The officials who were going to Tianshou Mountain had almost all arrived at Chongwenmen, and they were preparing to push the door open and go out.

When he reached the door, he suddenly remembered something and said, "Gao Yi will also take a rest in the next few days."

"You will be the leader of the daily lectures. Keep an eye on His Majesty and add some lessons."

Zhang Siwei looked at Zhang Juzheng in confusion.

Zhang Juzheng did not explain, but added: "Now that we have finished talking about Shangshu and Daxue, let's talk about history and the Analects, and talk more about the stories of benevolent and holy kings."

After saying that, he pushed the door and left the quiet room.

In Zhang Juzheng's opinion, the current emperor was too smart and not kind enough.

This is not a good thing.

He was preparing to write an illustrated book on the Emperor's Mirror, listing both wise rulers and foolish rulers, in order to give the emperor a good lesson during the imperial lectures.

Otherwise, if he relied on his talent and intelligence to do what King Sejong did, it would be his dereliction of duty.

He can still take responsibility for the current new policies, but after that, he will have to rely on the emperor himself.

Compared with attending court sessions, teaching moral principles is the most important thing.

Isn’t Sejong smart? Doesn’t he understand state affairs?
It is precisely because they understand too well and have no moral principles in their hearts that the harm has continued to this day.

When he went to persuade the two palaces to give the emperor more homework, he clearly said, "It is better to study hard than to attend court, which is especially practical."

The Ming Dynasty had no shortage of emperors who understood political tactics, but what it lacked was a benevolent ruler who cared about the world.

As for using daily lectures to keep His Majesty busy and less involved in the situation, that can only be said to be a side effect.

Thinking of this, he arrived at Chongwen Gate.

"Mr. Ge."

"Mr. Zhang Ge."

When everyone saw Zhang Juzheng coming, they all bowed to him.

"Minister Zhang, everyone." Zhang Juzheng returned the greeting and counted the number of people. "Are you all here? If you are, let's set off."

The weather is getting hot now, so if you leave earlier you can get some shade.

Zhang Shouzhi, the Minister of Revenue, replied, "Sir, the people from the Imperial Household Department haven't arrived yet. Please wait a little longer."

Zhang Juzheng looked around and indeed did not see anyone from the Imperial Household Department.

He could only nod, put his hands into his sleeves and wait.

After a long while, a figure finally came out from Chongwenmen.

Zhang Juzheng looked carefully and found that they were Cao Xianyu, the eunuch in charge of the Imperial Household Department, and Zhang Hong, the eunuch in charge of the Imperial Household Department.

I was confused.

Without waiting for him to ask, Zhang Shouzhi asked first: "Are you two going?"

Zhang Hong smiled flatteringly and said, "Eunuch Cao will follow you to Tianshou Mountain. I am here on the orders of His Majesty."

After saying that, he greeted.

The young eunuch behind him came up holding a wooden tray covered with yellow silk.

Zhang Hong lifted the yellow silk and bowed in the direction of the Qianqing Palace: "Your Majesty said that the weather has been getting hotter recently, and the mosquitoes in Tianshou Mountain have become very hot."

"Your Majesty cannot bear to see your trusted ministers waste their bodies."

"He specifically ordered me to go to the Imperial Hospital to get some herbs to reduce body temperature and relieve summer heat, as well as some medicine sachets to repel mosquitoes."

As he spoke, he distributed them to the officials in front of Chongwenmen one by one.

Zhang Juzheng shook his head secretly. His Majesty really knows how to win people's hearts.

Just as he was thinking about it, Zhang Hong stepped forward, handed over a sachet, and whispered, "Lord Zhang, this is a medicine sachet made by His Majesty himself."

"The Emperor said that the Minister is a loyal minister and the new policies will depend on him. Please take good care of yourself."

Zhang Juzheng subconsciously took the medicine bag.

It wasn't until Zhang Hong left that he came to his senses.

He stared blankly at the medicine bag in his hand that was crushed by the emperor himself, and was unable to react for a moment.

With a strange look on his face, he was about to put it into his sleeve.

After thinking about it, he silently hung the medicine bag around his waist.

After hanging it up, I looked at it again and again.

I still felt a little uncomfortable, so I simply took it off, put it in my arms, and kept it close to my body.

Looking up and seeing Zhang Shouzhi's inquiring eyes, Zhang Juzheng nodded and said, "Let's go. The sooner we go, the sooner we will be back."

After saying that, Ben Dang got on the carriage first, and held the medicine bag in his arms to avoid it being damaged by excessive movement.

……

Wenhua Hall, court meeting.

Gao Gong looked at the figure behind the screen on the imperial steps and was puzzled for a long time.

Finally, he could not help but say, "Your Majesty, today is the 14th day of the sixth lunar month. It is not the third, sixth, or ninth day of the lunar month, so you do not need to attend court."

Zhu Yijun's voice came from behind the screen: "Prime Minister, I have finished my daily lectures on Shangshu, and the lecturers said that I was biting off more than I could chew, so I was asked to sort out what I learned and take a few days off."

"My mother asked me to attend government affairs in the morning and review my lessons in the afternoon."

According to the original schedule, it would take at least seven months to complete the study of University and Shangshu, that is, from February to September.

It's only mid-June now, it's going so fast.

It makes sense to take two days off.

One day, with the approval of the lecturer and the instruction of Empress Dowager Li, he can sit here openly.

The screen blocked their view, so the officials could not see his expression. Only Feng Bao stood on the side, looking at the emperor holding the Analects in his hand, with vigilance in his eyes.

The voice came from behind the screen again: "The court will discuss this, and I will listen."

He said no more.

The court officials all had their own concerns and no longer dwelled on the matter.

Gao Gongshen glanced up the imperial steps, turned around and coughed softly: "Let's discuss the matter."

As soon as he finished speaking, Ge Shouli was about to speak.

A person named You Jieshizhong from the Household Department suddenly stepped out of the line and went first.

Li Zaiting took the lead and said, "My colleagues, I have something to discuss."

The Minister of Revenue Zhang Shouzhi was looking at the mausoleum. Today, a vice minister and a secretary came to the court meeting.

Li Zaiting was a Jinshi in the second year of Longqing, and his qualifications were extremely shallow.

His sudden words caused everyone to look at him sideways.

Li Zaiting pulled out a memorial from his sleeve and said, "Recently, I checked the military payroll of Xuanda and found an unsolved case." "In the fourth year of Longqing, the expenditure on grain exceeded 10,000 dan, and in the fifth year of Longqing, the expenditure was about 15,000 dan. However, after checking, it was found that only 11,000 dan were written off in the fifth year of Longqing. I wonder where the remaining 4,000 dan went?"

"That's fine, but this year the Ministry of War actually asked my Ministry of Revenue for more than 71,300 shi, several times more!"

He turned around and stared at Yang Bo: "Yang Bo, Minister Yang, I wonder where Xuan Da is going to use it?"

The officials did not expect that the court discussions would become more and more exciting day by day, not to mention the usual quarrels between Feng Bao and Gao Gong.

Now someone is causing trouble for the Jin Party again. I don’t know who is trying to take advantage of the situation.

Yang Bo was suddenly troubled and could only answer cautiously: "This is the expense requested by Xuan Da, to be used to repair the border defense of Xuanfu Town."

"The Ministry of War discussed it and it was not my intention to go to the Ministry of Revenue until there was no problem."

"As for the four thousand koku, perhaps they were also used to repair the border defenses."

This statement was completely rejected and handled very skillfully.

According to convention, when it comes to border defense, these censors should shut up. They can't go to Xuan Da to verify it now, right?

Even if he was really a stubborn donkey and wanted to go to Xuanda, he would have wiped his butt clean after going back and forth.

Unfortunately, Li Zaiting was looking for trouble on orders.

The goods on hand are all the inventory given by Duke Chengguo, which is very complete.

Hearing this, he not only did not let go, but pressed on step by step: "That's just right. When I was checking the accounts, I happened to find the Xuanda Inspector who just returned last month."

"After checking with both sides, we found that not even half of the defensive fortifications proposed earlier had been implemented!"

"We found out that all the past construction costs were false and abused!"

Many officials have already begun whispering to each other.

It came so fully that it didn't seem like a coincidence.

Li Zaiting looked directly at Yang Bo and said, "Minister Yang, the money was collected by your Ministry of War on behalf of Governor Wang, and it was also supervised by your Ministry of War. Now that something has happened, doesn't Minister Yang know about it?"

"Should my Ministry of Revenue give you the 71,300 shi this year?"

Zhu Yijun watched the charge of the vanguard with interest behind the screen.

This Li Zaiting is really easy to use.

Not only was he loyal to the emperor and patriotic, he was also efficient and resolute in his work, which immediately made Yang Bo speechless.

He had carefully selected this case.

To put it in a broader sense, it means lax border control and corruption and dereliction of duty.

To put it simply, it is just a matter of poor supervision.

At least it’s enough for Yang Bo to deal with it for a while.

Li Zaiting was still speaking: "Minister Yang, should your Ministry of War conduct a self-examination and give an explanation, or should I report it to the two palaces?"

Yang Bo just felt tired of wiping his butt.

He cupped his hands and said, "I will go back to the Ministry of War to verify this after the court session."

Li Zaiting shook his head: "Since Minister Yang is Governor Wang's relative, I suggest you avoid suspicion."

This is a bit overbearing.

Gao Gong also sensed something was wrong, and he looked at Ge Shouli inquiringly. Is this a righteous young man, or is there something wrong?
Ge Shouli was also confused and frowned, saying, "Li Zaiting, stick to the facts and don't make random comments."

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhang Chucheng, the Criminal Affairs Department's Imperial Censor, suddenly interrupted, "General Secretary, I think what Imperial Censor Li said makes sense."

Ge Shouli looked at Zhang Chucheng in confusion.

Zhang Chucheng also stepped out and looked at Yang Bo: "I also have a matter concerning the Minister of Personnel Zhang Siwei."

"It was Minister Zhang who accepted bribes and placed his fellow townsman in my Ministry of Justice. Coincidentally, the man he placed there was also a relative of Minister Yang."

"In my humble opinion, it is better to avoid suspicion with some of our close friends and relatives."

Court officials are different from the inner court.

Once impeached, one must submit a statement in person, either defending oneself or resigning.

Now that the two officials were targeting him, Yang Bo immediately felt like a thorn in his back.

He didn't even know who was targeting him!
At this time Gao Gong had to express his position. He could not develop into a clique, otherwise Wang Chonggu would become desperate and what would happen if he closed the door and let the dog out?

Now he is the only one in the cabinet, and he can make decisions on his own.

He looked at Li Zaiting and Zhang Chucheng and said, "How can you just talk nonsense? Present the evidence after the court session."

"Minister Yang, please go back to the Ministry of War and find out more. We can discuss this issue first and don't submit a memorial without any reason."

These words saved Yang Bo and Zhang Siwei.

If you have any problems, go back and clean your own butt, don't make shit all over your crotch.

Yang Bo immediately stated: "I will go back to the Ministry of War to sort out the case files and reply to the Household Department."

He didn't mention Zhang Siwei's placement of his relatives. What if it complies with the procedures? If not, he can go back and complete the formalities.

Gao Gong nodded, indicating that Yang Bo could leave first.

Li Zaiting and Zhang Chucheng looked at each other, decided to quit and retreat.

Having come to this, Zhang Siwei and Yang Bo should at least petition for removal, which is enough.

As soon as this matter was settled, Ge Shouli was about to step out to discuss the matter.

Feng Bao was sharp-eyed. Seeing that the Left Censor-in-Chief looked impatient, he immediately knew that another censor was going to impeach him.

Of course he wants to seize the initiative.

Feng Bao was also unequivocal and spoke first: "What the Secretary just said is reasonable. The nepotism in the court is really too much."

"I don't know much about the matter between Yang Bo and Zhang Siwei, so I won't say more."

"Yesterday, I was ordered to do something, and I actually dug out something extraordinary from a certain imperial censor."

"I never expected that there would be ministers forming cliques among themselves in the court!"

Ge Shouli was interrupted twice and felt annoyed.

Seeing Feng Bao talking on the imperial steps at this time, he couldn't help but feel even more depressed.

Since the censor was mentioned, he had to respond: "Feng Dayong, please speak kindly. I am reporting to the Censorate on the rumors. Don't accuse us of forming a clique by saying we share the same ideals."

Feng Bao didn't even look at Ge Shouli.

He just said to Gao Gong: "Yesterday, the censor Zhang Shouyue testified that someone had instructed his students and old friends to attack our family."

"Yuan Fu, the Queen Mother asked me to ask you if you have anything to say in your defense?"

Gao Gong said expressionlessly: "Feng Dayong, please speak directly. Don't beat around the bush and entangle me in it."

Naturally, he would not respond to Feng Bao's words.

Forming a clique is not something that can be taken seriously.

Feng Bao smiled and bowed in the direction of the Cining Palace: "The two palaces, the emperor has an order."

"Song Zhihan, the Imperial Secretary, roared in the court and lost his manners in front of the palace. He was sent to the cabinet to be punished."

"The Imperial Censor Zhang Shouyue sought fame by selling his integrity and criticizing the emperor. He should be demoted to the position of Tongpan of Daozhou and sent to the Cabinet for discussion."

"Furthermore, according to the confessions of Zhang Qi, Song Zhihan, and Zhang Shouyue, there is a trend of forming a faction in the court. The cabinet is required to submit a statement as soon as possible."

After saying that, he pointed to the outside of Wenhua Hall towards Gao Gong.

He said, "I have asked Yuan Fu to invite Zhang Shouyue to the cabinet. After the cabinet has finished questioning the case, he and Song Zhihan will be sent to the Metropolitan Procuratorate to await trial."

Gao Gong looked at Feng Bao coldly.

In a cold tone, he said, "The cabinet can forget about this decree. We will explain this matter to the two Empress Dowagers and His Majesty."

"It just so happens that Feng Dayong mentioned forming a clique."

"There is also an important matter here in this cabinet, which involves a wide range of issues and also concerns the censors. It turns out that the censors and the imperial censors of our dynasty impeached the same person, and the content is exactly the same."

"You may as well judge together, is this a clique, or is it driven by justice and national law?"

He turned and nodded to the officer.

Then an official came forward with dozens of memorials in his arms.

Gao arched his chin to indicate, and said, "The cabinet received memorials from 49 censors and 27 secretaries, and they all impeached Feng Dayong without any prior agreement."

"Everyone, let's discuss this."

More than seventy censors impeached!
Even several technical bureaucrats in the Ministry of Industry who were unaware of the situation could not help but look at each other in shock.

The court officials were even whispering to each other.

After Gao Gong finished speaking, he returned to the head of the class and kept silent.

The intensity escalates little by little in this way.

He wanted to rely on this day to gain a foothold and keep the court officials firmly around him.

Today, the censors were able to impeach Feng Bao despite Li’s pressure.

Once successful, it would be a sensation that would shake the heavens.

At that time, he would present the "Five Urgent Matters for the New Policy" and request the abolition of the Imperial Household Department, and more people would cheer for it.

This is the principle of accumulating momentum.

There were forty-nine censors and twenty-seven secretaries. This scale, just talking about recent years, is second only to the Zuo Shunmen case during the reign of Emperor Sejong.

In order to suppress the rebellion, Emperor Shizong had no choice but to send out the Embroidered Uniform Guards to beat court officials with sticks. What can Li and Feng Bao do now?
He wanted to see whether the Li family and the people from the Eastern Depot had the background and skills of Emperor Sejong.

Thinking of this, Gao Gong looked around at his ministers again.

He raised his head again to meet Feng Bao's gaze and stared at him without showing any weakness.

The two of them looked at each other with swordsmanship, and sparks almost flew in the court.

It was at this moment that everyone was surprised.

The screen above the imperial steps was suddenly removed.

　Note 1: In the sixth year of the Longqing reign, Zhang Siwei, who was in charge of the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel and the Imperial Academy, petitioned to be dismissed due to the impeachment of the official Zhang Chucheng, but his request was denied.

　　Note 2: The Ministry of Revenue also reported that Governor Wang Chonggu and others requested to repair the rations of the border fortress of Xuanfu Town. They said: "According to the salary records, more than shi were spent in the fourth year of Longqing, and more than shi were spent in the fifth year, which are all within the annual quota. Now, at the end of the fifth year of the town, the actual grain was more than shi less than the fourth year. It was also proposed to use more than shi of internal expenditures, and the cost of construction was checked in the past. There were many embezzlements and no practical use. The officials were accustomed to deceiving and were good at embezzlement. When checking, they pretended to be someone else. The food was paid according to the number of people, and it was reported on time without any embezzlement. When the enemy invaded in large numbers, the walls and fortresses were completely inconsistent with the previous proposal to build and repair the fortress. The waste of money and the shortage of the border area are all due to this."

　　
　
(End of this chapter)