I was compiling the daily records during the Wanli reign

Chapter 77: Tie your hair into a bun! Zhang Shoufu's "Quick Yao and Shun" Gift

On the third day of May, the weather is getting warmer.

The Liaodong disaster relief funds embezzlement case has officially come to an end.

A total of 1568 officials, clerks, merchants and bullies were punished in the Liaodong Regional Command, of whom 596 were beheaded.

Zhang Xueyan, the governor of Liaodong, was fined half a year's salary for his poor supervision. The young Emperor Wanli issued an imperial edict to admonish him: considering his past merits, he will be spared from demotion for the time being and will be severely reprimanded.

Although Li Chengliang, the general of Liaodong, was not involved, his subordinates and relatives were involved.

The court fined him half a year's salary, added another inspector to supervise military and political affairs, and ordered him to send soldiers from Liaodong to help the victims rebuild their homes. If there were any mistakes, he would be severely punished.

The disaster victims in the suburbs of Beijing also returned home one after another under the arrangement of the court.

at the same time.

The Hanlin Academy began compiling "A Summary of the Liaodong Disaster and Corruption Case". In addition to the emperor's edict of guilt and the apology letters of the officials, the description of the cause and effect of the case is as long as 53 pages. It will be transmitted to the local areas soon and used for historical research.

This shows the court's sincerity and determination to further rectify the administration of officials.

……

Mid-May, around noon.

In an old house in Qionshan, Hainan Island.

An old man with gray hair and a thin figure, wearing gray coarse clothes, is reading a letter from an old friend.

This old man's name is Hai Rui.

Since submitting the "Petition for Retirement from Illness" in the fourth year of the Longqing reign, he has been living in Qionshan, relying on the more than ten acres of land left by his ancestors to make a living, and his life is very poor.

He served as an official for eighteen years.

From being a teacher in Nanping County, Fujian Province to being the governor of Yingtian Prefecture, Jiangsu Province, he had hardly any money saved.

Although he lives on an isolated island now, he is not isolated from the news.

Many officials admired his character and would ask him about some political affairs, such as how to survey land, distribute taxes and labor service equally, control floods, and even guard against Japanese pirates.

Hai Rui spoke frankly and answered every letter very seriously.

At this moment, the letter he was reading was written by his old friend Wang Yongji, informing him of the court's handling of the case of embezzlement of Liaodong disaster relief funds.

Due to information delay, the final handling result has not yet been announced.

But the sincere and tough attitude shown by the court made Hai Rui's eyes light up, and he stood up suddenly.

In this life, what Hai Rui hated most were corrupt officials who oppressed the people.

"The government is becoming increasingly clear!" Hai Rui couldn't help but sigh.

The last time Hai Rui showed such excitement was when he saw Shen Nian's waste theory when he admonished the Imperial College.

At this moment, he was actually in a very depressed mood.

He felt that he still had the energy to work for the court, but those in power thought he was aloof and upright and not worthy of being reused.

He understood the principle that "only those with a high position can achieve something".

If you retire and stay at home, no matter how many good policies you write for governing the country, they will all be covered in dust.

Hai Rui looked at the clear sky in front of him and suddenly wanted to write a letter to the young official named Shen Nian.

Shen Nian was the only young official who made him feel bright.

He was afraid that it would be a flash in the pan, that it would soon go with the flow and be drowned in the intrigues of officialdom.

He did not like Zhang Juzheng's monopoly of power.

He disliked the blind obedience of officials in the capital, and disliked the various unhealthy tendencies in the court.

These people won't listen to him either.

He felt that Shen Nian, a bold and energetic young man, might listen to his advice and avoid being corrupted and maintain his original intention in his subsequent career.

Hai Rui thought for a moment, straightened his somewhat hunched body, went back to his room to grind ink, and then picked up his pen.

……

May 17th, after the Sunday lecture.

The young Wanli rewarded the three cabinet elders and a number of daily lecturers with silver ingots ranging from ten to fifty taels on account of their hard work.

After Shen Nian received the reward.

They knew that the reward was not given to the young Wanli because of their hard work, but because the young Wanli was happy.

Tomorrow, little Wanli will have his hair-binding ceremony.

Tie your hair into a bun.

It means that he has reached adulthood, is a grown-up, can get married, and can rule the country.

Young Wanli knew in his heart that it was absolutely impossible for him to rule the country personally.

But he can live alone now.

At present, his desire to live alone is greater than ruling the country, getting married, or anything else.

present.

Empress Dowager Li and young Wanli lived together in the warm room of the Qianqing Palace.

There were two beds in the room, facing each other east and west. Every night, Empress Dowager Li and young Wanli slept on opposite beds.

He was very cautious when turning over or coughing, for fear of being scolded.

This made young Wanli very uncomfortable.

He lived under the surveillance of Zhang Juzheng during the day and under the surveillance of Empress Dowager Li at night. He read, attended government affairs, and slept like a puppet, without any fun at all.

This made him look forward to having some free time every day.

If you can live alone.

It means he has more free time at night.

He could close his eyes for a while, read some books, walk around the bedroom, laugh and talk loudly, even have a drink secretly while looking at the moon, or find some beautiful palace maids...

Although some eunuchs will still stay around him, he has ways to make them shut up.

Living alone seems to be the biggest dream of little Wanli at the moment.

……

On May 18th, the day that little Wanli had been looking forward to finally arrived.

Before five o'clock.

Under the arrangement of the Ministry of Rites, he went to the Taimiao to worship his ancestors, recited the prayer, and announced it to the world.

after that.

Young Wanli changed into the imperial robes embroidered with twelve patterns, tied his hair in a golden crown, and went to the Huangji Gate to attend court.

All officials gathered under the Huangji Sect.

They presented congratulatory messages one after another, celebrating the little Wanli's coming of age. Shen Nian could almost see the smile that was hard to hide on the corner of the little Wanli's mouth.

He guessed—

Little Wanli might have been thinking about rolling around on his bed in the Qianqing Palace tonight.

This is the nature of every teenager.

Long live freedom!

Shen Nian also hopes that the young Wanli can have more freedom, otherwise he will become more rebellious. Once his psychology becomes deformed, his character problems will cause various hidden dangers in the Ming Dynasty after he takes power in the future.

Afterwards, the chief minister of the cabinet, Zhang Juzheng, spoke.

He first expressed praise that "the emperor has grown up and gradually become sensible", and then, on the grounds that "although the emperor is still a young boy, he has not yet completed his studies", he pleaded with the cabinet to continue to run the government.

Young Wanli naturally agreed decisively and expressed his gratitude to the cabinet ministers for their hard work in assisting the government and gave them many rewards.

……

About half an hour later, the postponed daily lectures finally began in Wenhua Hall.

Shen Nian, who was serving as the daily lecturer, found that the young Wanli looked dejected at the moment, like a wilted eggplant.

He was completely different from the excitement he had in the morning.

After the lectures started.

Little Wanli listened very inattentively and absent-mindedly. He just nodded and followed along, and did not ask questions as usual.

Even when Shen Nian was lecturing.

He was also in low spirits and looked a little tired.

The lecturers all thought that the young Wanli had a lot of things to do today and might be a little tired.

But Shen Nian clearly felt that this was not physical fatigue, but emotional depression.

After the lecture ended.

After Shen Nian asked the eunuchs who were accompanying him, he found out why the young Wanli's emotions fluctuated so greatly.

Before the lecture.

Empress Dowager Li and Zhang Juzheng had a conversation in front of the young Emperor Wanli.

The two of them unanimously decided: before the wedding of the young Wanli, Empress Dowager Li would continue to live in the Qianqing Palace and rule the country from behind the scenes, and would move out after the young Wanli got married.

In addition, the two of them specifically instructed the palace eunuchs:
No palace maids under the age of 30 were allowed to serve the young Wanli; after the young Wanli returned to the Qianqing Palace, he could not step out of the hall without the permission of Empress Dowager Li.

When Shen Nian heard these arrangements, he couldn't help but frown.

Young people from other families become freer as they grow older, but little Wanli becomes less free as he grows older.

He deeply understood the helplessness of the young Wanli.

The latter did not overturn the table during the daily lecture, which was considered very well-behaved and polite.

His most anticipated dream of living alone was instantly shattered by Empress Dowager Li and Zhang Juzheng.

Shen Nian was very dissatisfied with the extremely harsh discipline of Empress Dowager Li and Zhang Juzheng towards the young Wanli, but he knew that with his current status, he could not convince them at all.

This might drive little Wanli crazy.

Shen Nian was even a little worried that the young Wanli might become depressed or give up the throne in anger.

Teenagers of this age are the most emotional and can do anything.

……

The next day, there will be a meeting with Chang Chao.

Officials continued to present congratulatory messages to celebrate the young Wanli's coming of age.

When Shen Nian saw the little Wanli smiling, he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

The little emperor's endurance was beyond his expectations.

Today is a normal court day, not much to do.

Just as it was about to end, Zhang Juzheng stood up.

"Your Majesty is growing old, and you will need to pay more attention to state affairs. To help you better understand court affairs, I have specially presented you with a gift."

Hearing the word "gift", the young Wanli became interested and said with a smile: "I wonder what gift the Prime Minister has to present?"

Zhang Juzheng said loudly: "I respectfully humbly wish that my great-grandfather (Emperor Jiajing) would diligently govern the country for twenty years after ascending the throne. His wisdom and judgment are truly beyond the reach of previous emperors."

"I have ordered the Imperial Library to compile sixty-three imperial edicts, forty-four imperial decrees, and seventy imperial edicts. I have also selected from the Compilation and Revision Office sixty-five volumes of memorials and memorials signed by Emperor Taizu between the tenth and twentieth years of the Jiajing reign, and present them to you for your perusal."

"Your Majesty, in your free time, may take the old copy personally annotated by our great ancestor, Emperor Shizong, and read it, so that you may make decisions on common affairs."

After hearing about this "gift", all the officials below were impressed.

I admire Zhang Juzheng for presenting the old copy with the imperial grandfather's personal comments to the emperor at this time. It shows that his heart is with the emperor and the court, and he has implemented the words "to make the king as good as Yao and Shun" very well.

Shen Nian was at a loss whether to laugh or cry.

From ancient times to the present, no fourteen-year-old boy would be interested in a pile of old memorials.

What’s more, more than 200 books were given away at once.

According to Zhang Juzheng's habit, he would check the reading situation of the young Wanli at most once every two weeks.

Zhang Juzheng disliked Emperor Longqing very much and denounced his debauchery in front of the young Wanli many times, but he admired Emperor Jiajing very much.

At this moment, Shen Nian turned to look at little Wanli, feeling a little distressed.

In the past few days, first, her dream of living alone was shattered, then she had to get approval from Empress Dowager Li to enter and leave the Qianqing Palace, and palace maids under the age of 30 were not allowed to serve her. Now, she has to bear such a heavy burden.

He was attacked from both sides by Empress Dowager Li and Zhang Juzheng.

I hope he will soon become like Yao and Shun.

Even though the young Wanli had been forced to bend and stretch, he was probably heartbroken.

What may make little Wanli speechless is——

Zhang Juzheng was still waiting for the young Wanli to praise him for his hard work for the emperor.

The civil and military officials were also waiting for the young Wanli to praise Zhang Juzheng, and they were thinking that they should emulate Zhang Juzheng in the future and contribute more to the growth of the young Wanli.

At this moment, the little Wanli's hands hidden in his robes may have been clenched into fists.

He paused and said, "Thank you for your hard work, Prime Minister. I will read every sentence carefully and understand the method used by our Emperor to rule on common affairs!"

Upon hearing this, all the officials said in unison: "Your Majesty is wise!"

Then, the regular court session ended.

Although Shen Nian could not see any expression of dissatisfaction on little Wanli's face.

But he felt that the latter must be very disgusted with government affairs at this moment, and he vaguely felt that something bad might happen.

(End of this chapter)