Ming Jiajing: Starting from Immortality

Chapter 261: Impeach the Emperor and overturn the grape trellis!

Both are temples for virtuous people.

After finishing the government affairs at hand, the Chief Minister of the Cabinet Zhang Juzheng came to the inn in the middle of the night with Gao Gong, Hu Zongxian, Li Chunfang and others.

Zhang Juzheng did not resort to the practice of sending condolences to his superiors. Several cabinet ministers had different relationships with the governors and provincial governors, so he simply let the cabinet ministers go and meet their friends separately.

As the prime minister, he had to meet all the governors and governors-general. For Zhang Juzheng, there was no order of priority and he just pushed open the door of Shandong Governor Yuan Hongyu.

Yuan Hongyu, who was lying on the sickbed, did not expect Yuan Fu to appear here at this time, and subconsciously tried to struggle to sit up.

"Lie down quickly, please lie down!" Zhang Juzheng didn't wait for Yuan Hongyu to greet him. He took a few steps forward and helped the man lie down again.

The postmaster brought a chair and placed it behind Yuan Fu, saying, "Please sit down, Lord."

Zhang Juzheng waved his hand and said, "Move it away and close the door from the outside."

The postmaster moved the chair away again, walked out and closed the door from the outside.

Yuan Hongyu, lying on the sickbed, looked at Zhang Juzheng.

"Yizhi (Yuan Hongyu's pen name), I came to see you on the order of His Majesty."

Zhang Juzheng said without hesitation, "Your Majesty is also thinking about you."

Although Yuan Fu's words were touching, Yuan Hongyu could still hear the hypocrisy beneath his kindness and sorrow.

Yuan Hongyu had a dull expression and cold eyes, and looked extremely discouraged.

Zhang Juzheng remained silent.

Both of them were Jinshi in the 26th year of Jiajing. Although the imperial examination in the 26th year of Jiajing did not produce as many officials as the Jinshi in the 20th year of Jiajing, it was also pretty good.

Not to mention Zhang Juzheng, the chief minister of the cabinet, there were also people like Yang Jisheng, Wang Shizhen, Wang Daokun, Yin Zhengmao, Song Yiwang, and Yin Shidan.

The number one scholar that year was none other than Li Chunfang, a cabinet minister known as the Licorice Elder.

There are fewer officials and ministers, but they all have good reputations and are involved in all aspects of the court and the country. This is better than the Jinchou Imperial Examination in the 20th year of Jiajing. Zhang Juzheng and his group of Jinshi have good relationships and are more compatible with each other, and they usually interact with each other.

Therefore, Zhang Juzheng knew that his younger brother Yuan Hongyu was running around the capital day and night to obey the imperial order, which resulted in his hip bone being injured, and he was dissatisfied with the emperor. He pondered for a while, cleared his throat, and said: "The sage said that there are no parents who are not right in the world. By extension, there are no kings and fathers who are not right in the world.

When my great-grandfather Emperor Gaozu was teaching officials how to judge lawsuits, he also said that when father and son are in a lawsuit, the fault lies with the son rather than the father; and when brothers are in a lawsuit, the fault lies with the younger brother rather than the older brother. The same principle applies.

In our Great Ming, there is only one sovereign who protects hundreds of millions of subjects, and there is also only one sovereign who is worshipped by hundreds of millions of subjects.

Even if you don't want to, you can't do this, and you shouldn't cause trouble when the dragon is moving."

This is a profound truth, an irrefutable one. After hearing what Zhang Juzheng said, Yuan Hongyu became even more silent.

However, Zhang Juzheng understood that this was not agreement, but rather noncommittal. From the iron-blooded remonstrance minister Yang Jisheng, we can see a characteristic of the Jinshi candidates in the 26th year of Jiajing, that is, "sticking to one's own opinion."

People like Yuan Hongyu are indeed good officials. They work for the people and are not greedy or selfish, but they are too stubborn.

As long as you believe that something is right, you should stick to it as much as possible. As long as you believe that something is wrong, you should fight for it with all your might.

Since he was educated, Yuan Hongyu understood the principle of serving the country and the people. When he spoke out and made suggestions, he always felt the blood rushing through his limbs.

Yuan Hongyu said, "Prime Minister, I want to submit a memorial. Even if I can't bring down rain for all the people in the world, I want to send a thunderbolt to the court and the people of the Ming Dynasty, which are silent!"

Zhang Juzheng's eyes sparkled, and he asked, "How do I submit a petition?"

"Since the fortieth year of Jiajing, the ministers of the Ming Dynasty have submitted memorials, but they have been cautious and only discussed the matter without mentioning the person. They only criticized the ministers but not the emperor. I think it is better not to submit such memorials."

Yuan Hongyu's chest rose and fell with his breath, and he became more and more excited: "If you want to denounce, denounce the one-man rule, if you want to advise, advise the monarch and his ministers to rule together! This is a great article for the ages, I only hope that the present emperor will repent.

If the Ming Dynasty continues to serve one person, the country will be destroyed one day, and the world will surely rebel..."

"Repress it, be careful with your words!"

Zhang Juzheng reminded him: "Any fault in the world is first of all my fault, the fault of the cabinet, the fault of the six ministries and nine officials, and never the fault of the emperor or father."

"Prince, isn't it your fault that you are not a king, or is it your fault that you are not clear about your duties as a minister?"

Yuan Hongyu immediately asked back, struggling to stand up, and said: "The memorial I submitted is to ask for an imperial decree for the sake of world peace.

The ruler is the master of all the people and all things in the world. As the master of all the people and all things in the world, he has the greatest responsibility. If there is anything wrong with the welfare of the people, he will not be able to fulfill his duty. Therefore, the ruler should be fully prepared and entrust his responsibilities to his ministers and let them speak out. If the ministers speak out, the ruler's way will be fulfilled. Those who used to be eager to please, flatter and obey, so that disasters were isolated and the ruler did not hear about it, are not worth mentioning. "

As he listened to every word, Zhang Juzheng's expression suddenly changed.

"Your Majesty is wise but misuses it. He thinks that immortality can be achieved, and he only cares about cultivating the mystical world. He is rich but does not say that the people's fat lies in this, and he indulges in construction projects. He has not attended court for more than 20 years, and the rules and regulations have been relaxed. He has promoted several cases, and the titles and honors are abused. The two kings do not meet, and people think that they are not as good as father and son. He suspects and slanders his subordinates, and people think that they are not as good as the monarch and his subjects. He enjoys the West Garden and does not return to the palace, and people think that they are not as good as husband and wife. The officials in the world are corrupt and the generals are weak, the people are not living, floods and droughts are frequent, and thieves are rampant. Since the beginning of your Majesty's reign, there have been such things, but not as serious..."

"The ruler has his own way, and the minister has his own duties. However, in the past, the duties were correct and complete, but they were not carried out. Today, the duties are abandoned, and the duties are performed carelessly and according to the rules. They are not serious and do not follow the law, but they think they are right... The civil and military officials are content with their positions, how can they not have a sword hanging over their heads?"

"——Officials in the world have been disloyal to His Majesty for a long time!"

Zhang Juzheng's head buzzed with a bang, and his mind was filled with that buzzing voice: "Officials in the world have been disloyal to the emperor for a long time...Officials in the world have been disloyal to the emperor for a long time..."

As a man who was very eager for power, Zhang Juzheng thought of countless ways to play the game with the emperor, but he never thought of submitting a memorial to the emperor, bluntly stating that the emperor should delegate power to civil and military officials throughout the world. After that, the civil officials would govern the people and the military officials would guard the borders, and the world would naturally be governed well.

To be frank, all the drawbacks and shortcomings of the current Ming Dynasty are due to the fact that the sage is ruling alone and secretly holding power. If power had been handed over to the ministers earlier, the people of the world would probably have lived and worked in peace and contentment long ago.

In addition, they accused the emperor of practicing Taoism and fasting, building palaces and Taoist temples, not attending court, not seeing his children or grandchildren, and living in the Western Garden instead of the Forbidden City...

crazy!

It's crazy!

Even the most resilient Zhang Juzheng was trembling. If he really submitted such a memorial, he felt that the sky would fall and the earth would split in an instant. Zhang Juzheng didn't care about etiquette, and he turned around and walked out without even saying goodbye. He didn't intend to meet with other governors and governors. He went home, closed the door, and didn't let the blood splash on him!

……

Xiangfu.

Zhang Juzheng had not returned yet, but the man at the door was holding a lamp, obviously waiting. When he saw a carriage coming, he hurried to greet it.

Hai Rui got off his sedan chair and came to visit in the middle of the night. Everyone in the Prime Minister's residence was surprised, but the leading butler at the door greeted him with a smile, "Haibu Tang is visiting at this time because he has something urgent to do. But the Prime Minister hasn't come back yet."

"If you don't come back, I'll wait."

Hai Rui responded and walked inside.

This expression of not feeling offended at all frightened the butler of the Xiangfu so much that his eyebrows and eyes twitched, and he stammered, "Maybe the Prime Minister won't come back tonight."

Hai Rui climbed up the stairs and said without turning his head, "You're not coming back? Then who are you waiting for?"

Now, the butler of the prime minister's residence had nothing to say and could only smile and welcome Hai Rui into the west gate room, serving him tea and snacks.

Most of the things in the prime minister's residence were for viewing, but not for Hai Rui. He was busy all day and had no time to eat properly. He just picked up the snacks and started eating.

Just after eating a sweet-scented osmanthus cake, I heard a noise outside the gate. I heard Zhang Juzheng outside saying to the doorman: "I want to talk to the head of the Ministry of Marine Affairs tonight. No matter who it is, I will not see anyone!"

As the voices got closer, Zhang Juzheng walked into the west gate room and saw the tea in the big teapot and two snacks in front of Hai Rui. He turned around and scolded the housekeeper, "You are serving this to a distinguished guest. You are blinded by your greed!"

Everyone in the capital knew that Yuan Fu and Hai Bu Tang were not getting along, and that the Xiang Fu were all people who looked down on people. They tried to guess their master's thoughts and deliberately treated Hai Rui poorly.

Zhang Juzheng glared at the housekeeper fiercely, then turned to look at Hai Rui and said with an embarrassed smile, "I am a dull servant and do not know right from wrong. Ruxian, please follow me to the main hall."

Zhang Juzheng and Hai Rui sat down in front of the sumptuous banquet and started talking in secret while eating casually.

Zhang Juzheng dismissed his attendants and lowered his voice to say, "Ruxian, you came here because you have a lot of grudges against your old subordinates, right?"

When going to the Temple of the Worthy and Good, Zhang Juzheng noticed that Hai Rui was also in the inn. The reason was simple. The iconic sedan chair and carriage were shabby and ugly. In the entire court, apart from Hai Rui, no one else was able to travel with them.

The other ministers also knew that Hai Rui was in the inn, but visiting the governors and provincial governors was not a serious matter, so they had no time to meet them.

When Zhang Juzheng hurriedly left the Temple of the Wise and Talented, he saw that the sedan chair and carriage were gone. He thought that Hai Rui had left the inn and returned home, but he did not expect that Hai Rui came to his house. Combining his conversation with Yuan Hongyu, he knew why Hai Rui came.

Hai Rui did not hide anything. He nodded directly and whispered, "Some provincial governors did not take the forged memorial seriously, which led to the disaster today. I seem to see a change in the court right before our eyes."

Zhang Juzheng nodded repeatedly, but then spread his hands and said, "There is nothing we can do about it."

in fact.

The dissatisfaction of the governors and provincial governors-general is not due to the several major purges of the court initiated by the emperor last year. Without the emperor's purges of the officialdom, many governors and provincial governors-general would not have their current status.

These governors and governors-general are the vested interests of the emperor's "brutal and inhumane" behavior. Not only them, but also the two people at the table, Zhang Juzheng and Hai Rui, are all beneficiaries.

If the Yan Party had not fallen and if his mentor Xu Jie had not fallen, it would have been impossible for him to become the prime minister of the cabinet in a short period of time.

Similarly, Hai Rui did so many things that shocked the government and the public in Chun'an, Hangzhou, and Nanzhili. But we must understand one thing: Hai Rui was able to shock the government and the public because someone wanted him to. Otherwise, Hai Rui would most likely have fallen into the water and died for several months.

Hai Rui was promoted from a teacher in Nanping County, Fujian Province to the Minister of Rites within a year. Without the grace of the Emperor and his determination against all odds, it would have been impossible for him to achieve this.

However, when “they” gained status and held great power, they understood the difficulties faced by those who died or were deposed.

The emperor valued them and valued the Jinyiwei even more. Throughout the Ming Dynasty, the Jinyiwei had almost unlimited power. Apart from being responsible to the emperor, they did not need to explain their actions to anyone.

As long as the Jinyiwei got evidence, even if it was just reasonable suspicion, they could interfere and influence the court and local affairs at will, monitor officials, suppress officialdom, and maintain imperial power.

Today, all officials and civilians in the two capitals and thirteen provinces live in an atmosphere of terror. No one knows whether the person in front of or around him is one of the secret envoys of the Imperial Guard.

Even the person next to you can't be fully trusted.

Of course, the Jinyiwei would not interfere too much in the lives of ordinary people. Even if they received accurate intelligence, they would not take action unless the incident was particularly bad.

Once they take action, the risk of the secret envoy being exposed will increase, and the Jinyiwei has its own reasons for doing so.

But for officials, especially those who hold great power, and even those who have held great power at a young age, the existence of the Jinyiwei makes them feel like a thorn in their backs, a fishbone stuck in their throats, and sitting on pins and needles.

They were obviously so powerful, but at some point their close subordinates would be captured and killed by the Jinyiwei. Sometimes, even their blood relatives would fall victim to the Jinyiwei's "poisonous hands".

If that were all, they could still explain it by saying that officials must protect their feathers and that the Jinyiwei were helping them to trim their gray feathers. However, after those people were taken away by the Jinyiwei, the negative impact on these provincial governors was unbearable.

The closer the subordinates are, the more important tasks they will be entrusted with. In this era when all officials are proactive and enterprising, the provincial governors have many ways to benefit the country and the people in their minds, and they let their subordinates implement them.

Things were progressing well and would have been a great achievement in political achievement, but the person in charge suddenly disappeared, adding countless difficulties out of nowhere.

The governors and provincial governors hoped that the Jinyiwei would act according to the circumstances, but how could the Jinyiwei listen to them?
The Jinyiwei's disregard and recklessness broke the defenses of the governor-general, who was complacent and ready to show his abilities, and his dissatisfaction continued to accumulate.

Especially when one encounters setbacks while in charge of a local government, human nature is to blame others for one's failure.

Therefore, the Jinyiwei and the emperor who supported the Jinyiwei became the outlet for these honest and good officials to vent their anger when they failed and suffered setbacks.

Zhang Juzheng shook his head and sighed, "Guan Hanqing had a poem that day that goes: Crows and rosy faces, they killed the dowry. They are all from an adult family, not inferior to Hongniang. She greets people with a sweet smile, talks in literary style, and is like a flower that can speak. If we could get her, we would overturn the grape trellis..."

Once the governors and provincial governors "get her", they will not look back until "the grape trellis falls down".

And this day is right before our eyes.

(End of this chapter)