My aunt is Queen Ma

Chapter 115 Group System

Liu Bowen's abilities are beyond question. Although he wasn't as miraculous as the folk legends say, he was still a top-tier talent.

The Battle of Poyang Lake alone was enough to secure his place in history.

He was also upright and honest, and his family had no surplus wealth.

He hated evil and sympathized with the common people. During the Yuan Dynasty, he dared to crack down on local powerful families and uphold justice for the people.

In the first year of the Hongwu reign, he dared to disregard Li Shanchang's threats and forcibly executed Li Bin, who had violated the law and regulations.

However, he is also very sensible and will not blindly escalate the situation.

He also showed enough respect to Li Shanchang, so there was no need to worry about him dragging Li Shanchang down with him.

The more Zhu Yuanzhang thought about it, the more he felt that this person was a good choice.

He couldn't help but laugh and say to Zhu Biao, "It's like searching high and low without finding it; the candidate has arrived right here."

Zhu Biao also smiled and said, "Liu Zhongcheng is indeed suitable for this matter, but I wonder how well he has investigated the climate change issue."

Zhu Yuanzhang said with certainty, "If we are not mistaken, his request to see me this time is for this very matter."

Having said this, he turned to the eunuch and said:

"Xuan."

A short while later, Liu Bowen entered the main hall carrying a thick book. After exchanging greetings, he replied:

"Your Majesty, the climate change records you asked me to investigate have yielded results."

Zhu Yuanzhang first showed an expression of "I knew it," then asked with concern:

"How is the result?"

This wasn't an act; although he trusted Ma Yu's words, he still hoped to obtain more conclusive evidence for such a significant matter.

Liu Bowen's expression was solemn: "Your Majesty, I led people to search through all the historical records, local chronicles, genealogies, and literary essays that we could find."

"After extracting and summarizing the records that could prove climate change, we found that it was indeed as Xu Guogong said."

"There exists a temperature change in the world, with a cycle of eight hundred years."

As he spoke, he picked up the book and said, "This is all the excerpts from the records."

He picked up another thick stack of papers and said, "This is a curve graph drawn based on the coordinate system mentioned by Duke Xu."

"Please take a look, Your Majesty."

The eunuchs had already been driven out, so Zhu Biao stepped forward and handed the book and paper to Zhu Yuanzhang.

Zhu Yuanzhang first flipped through the book, which was full of information about weather, crops, plants and animals.

Each piece of information is clearly marked as to which book it was taken from.

Upon seeing this, he became even more convinced of the information's authenticity.

Then put down the book and unfold the paper.

The paper is five feet long and two feet wide.

A huge coordinate system is drawn on it, along with a curve representing temperature changes.

Each key milestone was marked with its approximate time in tiny print.

For example, the first year of King Wu of the Western Zhou Dynasty, and the third year of the Jianlong era of the Northern Song Dynasty.

Liu Bowen further explained, "The earliest record of climate that we can find dates back to the Shang Dynasty."

"So the curve starts from the Yin-Shang period and ends in the first year of Hongwu."

"After the first year of Hongwu, it was our deduction based on the pattern."

Zhu Yuanzhang immediately set his sights on the first year of the Hongwu reign and found that it was right on a downward curve.

The good news is that we are still in a warm period.

The bad news is that temperatures are dropping rapidly.

Liu Bowen's voice came again: "This warm period began around the end of the Southern Song Dynasty."

"According to normal patterns, we should be in the period of highest temperature right now."

"However, based on the current distribution of flora and fauna, as well as rainfall observations in the Hetao and Shaanxi Plateau regions, temperatures are decreasing."

"Based on calculations, it can be deduced that the world will enter a cold period in a hundred years..."

"If the predictions come true, this warm period will only last three hundred years."

"The cycle of warm and cold weather is eight hundred years, which means that in a hundred years, the world will enter a cold period that will last for five hundred years."

"It is almost identical to Duke Xu's deduction."

Even though he had prepared himself mentally, Zhu Yuanzhang was still very heavy-hearted when the matter was confirmed.

"A cold period lasting five hundred years, Heaven is not on the side of our Great Ming."

Liu Bowen was also extremely heavy-hearted. Just look at the mid-to-late Eastern Han Dynasty to see how terrible the cold period was.

Crucially, this cold period will last for five hundred years, and will be many times more devastating than the mid-to-late Eastern Han Dynasty.

Zhu Biao retorted, "Father, you are mistaken."

Zhu Yuanzhang asked curiously, "Oh, what brilliant idea do you have?"

Liu Bowen also looked at him.

Zhu Biao said, "Although the cold season is terrible, it's not entirely hopeless."

"The Song Dynasty was in a cold period for most of the time, but they still managed to survive it quite well, didn't they?"

"They didn't know about Wen Hanbian, yet they managed to survive."

"Our cousin reminded us and we knew about this in advance, so there's no reason why we wouldn't make it through."

"You just said that Heaven does not help the Ming Dynasty, but I think it is quite the opposite; Heaven favors the Ming Dynasty."

"He bestowed such great talent upon my cousin, Da Ming."

"This gave the Ming Dynasty another hundred years to prepare."

"The Yellow River, which is the most difficult to control, also changed its course and flowed north into the Bohai Sea in the first year of the Hongwu reign..."

All of this proves that destiny is clear.

"The next step is to see if the Ming Dynasty can live up to the Mandate of Heaven."

The more Zhu Yuanzhang listened, the happier he became, and finally he laughed loudly:

"Bowen, what do you think of our crown prince?"

Liu Bowen sincerely praised, "Your Majesty, I congratulate you!"

"The Crown Prince is benevolent and has the world in his heart; he will surely become a wise ruler in the future."

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed so hard he couldn't stop: "Haha...we love to hear that."

"However, the predicament that the Ming Dynasty will face a hundred years later will not be eliminated just because the crown prince is wise."

"We must start now and accumulate more wealth for our descendants."

"Moreover, the Song and Yuan dynasties left behind many problems that must be eradicated before we can talk about surviving the cold period."

"But doing so will inevitably affect the interests of many people."

"We cannot do this by ourselves alone; we need the concerted efforts of all people of goodwill and ambition to have any hope."

"Bowen, would you be willing to help us?"

In the process of arguing about the changes in temperature, Liu Bowen had already completed a shift in his mindset.

Upon hearing Zhu Yuanzhang's words, he immediately bowed and said:

"Thank you for your high regard, Your Majesty. I will dedicate myself to the Ming Dynasty and its people until my dying breath."

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed and said, "I knew Bowen wouldn't let us down."

Then he said with a serious expression, "Now that the matter of Wen Hanbian is over, you can withdraw from this situation."

"There's a very important matter we'd like to entrust to you to handle."

Then he talked about the corruption problem in Fengyang Construction:
"We'll give you the authority to handle this matter cheaply, but you must investigate this matter thoroughly and not let any corrupt official slip through your fingers."

Liu Bowen breathed a sigh of relief, as long as he wasn't allowed to engage in internal strife within the central government.

However, he also thought of another difficulty, so he spoke up:
"Fengyang Construction is a talent recommended by Prime Minister Li. I fear he will object if I were to handle it."

This is actually an implication that this matter may involve Li Shanchang, and what should be done.
Zhu Yuanzhang said, "Prime Minister Li is the first meritorious official in the founding of the Ming Dynasty. He is a man of great integrity and will not let personal matters interfere with public duty."

"You can go ahead and check it without worry."

"But we must also remain clear-headed and not let innocent people be implicated because of the accusations of those people."

The implication is that we will handle things properly with Li Shanchang, but we shouldn't involve him in this matter.

The remaining cases must be dealt with severely.

Liu Bowen felt completely relieved and said:
"Your subject obeys the decree and will never let any corrupt official go unpunished."

Afterwards, Zhu Yuanzhang discussed the construction of the Fengyang Imperial City with him.

He was told explicitly that the capital would be located in Anyang.

As for the Fengyang Imperial City, most of the non-essential buildings will be demolished, and the ones still under construction will be completed.

The remaining work was temporarily suspended, and the craftsmen and materials were transferred to Anyang.

"Let's concentrate our efforts on building Anyang first, and put the construction of the Fengyang Imperial City on hold for now."

"When you go to Fengyang, besides investigating the corruption case, take care of this matter as well."

Anyang? Liu Bowen immediately guessed that it was related to the precious cauldron.

After reviewing the terrain again, he felt it was suitable and gladly accepted the order.

The next morning at court, Liu Bowen presented his memorial, stating that after summarizing historical documents, he had discovered a new cyclical change.

Changes from warm to cold.

One cycle is eight hundred years.

Wu Bingrang, the Director of the Imperial Observatory, and all other participants came forward to confirm this.

In fact, rumors about this had been circulating for some time.

After all, Liu Bowen had special privileges, which allowed him to order reports and records from all over the country and send people to conduct on-site investigations in various places.

Everyone was naturally very curious about what they were investigating.

With so many people handling it, there's no longer any secret.

Even though Liu Bowen was solely responsible for the crucial drawing process, he still couldn't keep the secret.

The news of Wen Hanbian had already spread in private.

Most people scoffed at the idea, thinking that such a thing could not possibly exist.

However, as more and more information was disclosed, people began to feel anxious.

However, until the official news came out, everyone remained skeptical.

At this time, when Liu Bowen and others confirmed the existence of the Wen Han Bian, the court was still in an uproar.

Many people stood up to oppose it, and even Song Lian raised questions.

Zhu Yuanzhang gave Liu Bowen a wink.

Liu Bowen immediately took out all the data, as well as the temperature change curve.

"These are all the evidence. You may not believe me, Liu Ji, but you cannot disbelieve the historical records left by our predecessors."

Some people still raise questions: Who can guarantee that historical records will not be inaccurate?
Liu Bowen retorted, "It is normal for one or two historical materials to have some discrepancies, but it is impossible for all historical materials to be wrong."

"This picture was derived by cross-referencing multiple historical materials."

"If you don't believe this result, then please first refute the historical records."

After these words were spoken, most people fell silent.

After all, the historical records are there, and they can't be faked.

What? This proves that most historical records are fake?

Stop it.

However, a small group of people, especially die-hard Confucianists, still insist that the change between warm and cold weather does not exist.

The historical records are true; the problem lies in the statistics compiled by Liu Bowen and his colleagues.

Moreover, many disasters are punishments sent down by nature and have nothing to do with climate change.

However, even most Confucian scholars thought their remarks were incredibly foolish.

What era are we living in? Why are we still doing this kind of thing?

You can use this trick to appease mediocre rulers on ordinary days, but you can use it to deal with emperors who have conquered the country on horseback.

That's nothing but stupidity.

Their opinions were completely ignored.

However, not everyone was paying attention to Wen Hanbian; many people had their minds elsewhere.

For example, Li Shanchang, seeing Liu Bowen gaining great fame, had a very long face.

Wang Guangyang felt a real threat. Was Liu Bowen trying to take his place?
Hu Weiyong wore a kind smile, but in his heart, alarm bells were ringing.

Li Shanchang was about to resign as prime minister due to illness, a position he had been eyeing for a long time.

Liu Bowen brought out the Wenhan Transformation at just the right time, not too early, not too late. Could it be that he also intends to compete for this position?
No, I can't just sit there and wait for death.

However, they also knew the gravity of the matter. Liu Bowen dared to bring this up in the imperial court, which meant he must have received Zhu Yuanzhang's permission.

It is very likely that the future national policies of the Ming Dynasty will revolve around the upcoming cold season.

If you oppose Wen Hanbian, you will most likely be eliminated.

Therefore, not only should you not oppose it, you should also appear to be very supportive.

At this moment, Zhu Yuanzhang finally spoke up, saying, "During the cold season, the north becomes colder and the climate is more changeable, resulting in reduced grain production."

"If the imperial court does not respond properly, the mid-to-late Eastern Han Dynasty will serve as a cautionary tale."

"But you should not be too discouraged. The Song Dynasty was in a period of hardship, but it still managed to survive thanks to its appropriate system."

"As long as everyone is of one mind, the Ming Dynasty will surely be able to get through this cold period."

The officials gradually calmed down. Yes, the Song Dynasty had survived.

Our Great Ming Dynasty has unified the world; there's no way we can't survive this.

Hu Weiyong spoke first: "Your Majesty is wise and mighty. Under Your Majesty's leadership, our Great Ming will surely be invincible and establish an unshakeable foundation."

The others then realized what was happening and began to flatter him.

Zhu Yuanzhang showed no reaction to this flattery, but simply said sternly:

"The Yuan Dynasty was established by barbarians, leaving behind many problems."

"We must completely eradicate these ills and leave a clean and honest world for our descendants."

"This will increase the chances of surviving the cold season, so..."

His cold gaze swept over the assembled officials, and he said:
"The Ming Dynasty will undergo a major transformation, re-establishing rules for the world."

"Anyone who dares to obstruct us will face our ruthlessness."

Upon hearing this, many officials frowned. A major reform? What are you planning?
However, after the establishment of the new dynasty, it was only natural to establish its own system of rites and laws, so they did not directly stand up to oppose it.

But this doesn't mean they support major changes.

It depends on how the emperor plans to reform; if it goes too far, then it must be opposed.

As for the last two threatening remarks, most people didn't take them to heart.

After all, Zhu Yuanzhang had not yet begun his massacres, and they did not know what kind of person was sitting on the throne.

But there's no rush; I'm sure they'll find out soon.

Zhu Yuanzhang observed the reactions of his ministers, but said nothing, only inwardly sneering.

Then he began to commend Liu Bowen and others.

After all, proving the existence of the Warm-Cold Transformation is a great achievement.

Liu Bowen was promoted to Imperial Censor for his merits and took charge of the Censorate.

Upon hearing this appointment, a buzz of discussion immediately filled the court.

The Grand Censor, though outwardly the highest-ranking official in the Censorate, actually held the position of Prime Minister.

In other words, Liu Bowen became the third prime minister of the Ming Dynasty.

The courtiers were naturally very shocked.

The difference is that some people are happy, while others are sad.

Officials from the Zhejiang region, and even those from Jiangnan, were extremely excited.

Liu Bowen was also an official from the south. Does this mean that their time is coming?

The surrendered officials of the Yuan Dynasty were also very happy.

Liu Bowen also served in the Yuan Dynasty and is now the Prime Minister of the Ming Dynasty, which shows that the Ming Dynasty would not have any prejudice against them.

I can work with peace of mind now.

Correspondingly, some members of the Huaiyou faction were unhappy.

What qualifications did Liu Bowen have to become prime minister?

They all knew Zhu Yuanzhang's personality and dared not openly oppose him.

He was just thinking about how to give Liu Bowen a taste of his own medicine.

However, Wang Guangyang, Hu Weiyong, and others breathed a sigh of relief.

Although the Imperial Censor was also a prime minister, he did not rank very high.

The real decision-makers in the government were the left and right prime ministers of the Secretariat.

What the two of them were vying for was the position of Left Chancellor, or at the very least, Right Chancellor.

Once Liu Bowen became the Imperial Censor, it was impossible for him to try and take the position again.

For the two of them, it was equivalent to eliminating a competitor.

I'm only happy, how could I not be?

Li Shanchang frowned. "I haven't resigned yet."

The emperor didn't even consult me ​​about such an important matter as appointing the Grand Censor.

This time, it's not that he couldn't recognize his own limitations; rather, it's because the system of rites and laws stipulates that the appointment of a prime minister must be endorsed by the signatures of other prime ministers.

He is still the Left Chancellor, and the emperor doesn't consult him on such a major matter.

Not only is it against etiquette, but it also shows a complete disregard for him.

He was naturally furious.

However, as I said before, he had absolutely no way to solve the problem.

Zhu Yuanzhang was not one to follow the rules; he forcibly appointed a prime minister, and no one could stop him.

However, what happened next completely changed Li Shanchang's expression.

After rewarding several people, everyone thought the morning court session was over.

Unexpectedly, an imperial censor submitted a memorial impeaching the corrupt construction of the Fengyang Imperial Palace.

"...Officials at all levels embezzled countless sums of money and grain, even cutting off most of the rations for laborers and artisans..."

Was there corruption among the officials involved in the construction of the Fengyang Imperial Palace?
This impeachment shocked the court officials; it was a slap in the face to the emperor.

Everyone instinctively looked at Zhu Yuanzhang, wondering how he would react.

A small number of people also looked at Li Shanchang.

Zhu Yuanzhang's face immediately turned ashen. After taking the memorial and flipping through it, he threw it on the ground.
"Outrageous! Lawless! Do you really think our swords are ineffective?"

"Liu Bowen".

Liu Bowen stepped forward and said, "Your subject is here."

Zhu Yuanzhang said coldly, "I hereby appoint you as Imperial Envoy. You shall depart for Fengyang immediately and investigate this matter thoroughly."

"No matter who it is, they will be severely punished without exception."

Liu Bowen replied, "I will obey Your Majesty's command."

Li Shanchang finally couldn't hold back any longer and stepped forward, saying, "Your Excellency, regarding this matter..."

Zhu Yuanzhang didn't give him a chance to speak at all, interrupting him:

"If Prime Minister Li is not feeling well, he should rest and recuperate. These minor matters can be left to them."

Li Shanchang's face turned red, and he opened and closed his mouth repeatedly, but could not utter a single word.

At this moment, he finally realized that the matter in Fengyang had been exposed.

No wonder Liu Bowen was appointed as prime minister without consulting him.

The emperor probably has a lot of opinions about him right now.

He wasn't worried about his life or death; he was confident in that regard.

He was worried about something else.

Over the past year or so, Zhu Yuanzhang has gradually drifted away from him in many policies.

After this incident, it will probably be very difficult for me to regain power.

This is what he finds most unacceptable.

Moreover, everyone knows that many of the officials involved in the construction of the Fengyang Imperial City were recommended by him and were his people.

If Liu Bowen were to wipe them all out, it would be a heavy blow to his faction's power.

This will inevitably lead many people to choose betrayal.

This was also a blow to him.

No, we have to find a way to cover this up.

Should we ask Liu Bowen to show leniency?

He immediately rejected the idea, as the Li Bin incident had already proven that Liu Bowen would not give him that kind of face.

Then the only option is to destroy the evidence.

It's unclear whether he made a mistake in his haste and didn't realize he was being watched.

He was overconfident, believing that his messenger could evade the surveillance of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

After the court session, he immediately wrote a letter and sent it to Fengyang as soon as possible.

The messenger was arrested as soon as he left Yingtian City.

Soon the letter appeared on Zhu Yuanzhang's desk.

He opened it and looked at it, his expression turning somewhat grim.

However, he didn't say anything, and instead burned the candle to ashes.

“Send another team of Imperial Guards to Liu Bowen and tell him to eradicate evil completely.”

Zhu Biao, his face contorted with anger, said, "Yes, what about Prime Minister Li here?"

Although he hadn't seen the contents of the letter, he could guess some of it, and he was extremely angry.

He didn't seem like his own father; he had no special feelings for Li Shanchang.

I just felt that this founding hero had really gone too far.

Zhu Yuanzhang remained silent for a long time before finally saying in a low voice:
"Li Shanchang made great contributions to the establishment of the Ming Dynasty. Let's give him some face, even if we don't care about the monk."

Zhu Biao frowned and said, "But if we let him continue like this, where will the dignity of the national law be?"

Zhu Yuanzhang sighed, "He's not feeling well, so let him rest and recuperate."

Zhu Biao wanted to say something more, but suddenly realized something was wrong.

"Take good care of him" means that he will no longer be allowed to have any contact with power.

fair enough.

So he changed his words and said, "Father is wise."

Zhu Yuanzhang changed the subject, saying, "The military merits at the Ministry of Rites have been verified almost completely. In a few days, we will bestow great rewards upon the meritorious officials."

"You'll be in charge of the ceremony."

"Communicate more with Minister Tao; he knows more about this than we do."

Zhu Biao knew he didn't want to talk about Li Shanchang anymore, so he followed the topic:
"Yes, I'll go find Minister Tao right away."

The two then chatted for a while about the investiture ceremony and quickly came up with a general outline.

Zhu Yuanzhang then waved his hand and said, "Let's proceed as planned. I'm tired, you may leave."
-
Now let's talk about the matter of Wen Hanbian.

The news spread quickly after the court session, causing a sensation throughout the court and the public.

First and foremost, the officials.

Previously, this matter was confidential and had not been confirmed; it was only discussed privately.

Now the imperial court has announced it publicly, and it has also been verified by Liu Bowen and others.

That's different.

People started discussing this matter in various public settings.

Some people agree, some doubt, and some simply conclude that it's fake.

Regardless of their stance, they immediately sought out the officials involved in the investigation, hoping to obtain firsthand information from them.

Those officials had already obtained permission and did not conceal it.

He recounted the entire argumentation process to the audience in detail.

Even those who initially didn't believe it began to hesitate.

Could it be that the change from warm to cold is real?

If there really is a change in temperature, the impact would be enormous.

Putting aside other matters, in order to cope with the upcoming cold season, the emperor will probably really launch an unprecedented major reform.

This is something that most officials would not want to see.

Many people have already begun to make arrangements in private, and no matter how the court changes, they will all stand together to protect their own interests.

Zhu Yuanzhang saw all of this, but said nothing.

Oppose change?

You'll have to survive the tax and finance corruption scandal first.

The public discussion about the change from warm to cold weather is even more intense, but the cold period will not appear for another hundred years, so there is no immediate pain involved.

Most people didn't take it too seriously, but rather treated it as a topic of conversation during their leisure time.

Just like the previous topic of the Yellow River diverting into the Huai River and flowing into the sea.

For the people of the North, this was a matter of life and death.

But for people in the south, it's just something to talk about over tea.

However, as the topic spread, it quickly became distorted.

Before long, the myth about the transformation of Wen Han was created.

The concepts of warmth and cold are controlled by a couple, with the man's palm representing warmth and the woman's palm representing cold, and so on.

They also created many moving and inspiring stories.

Ma Yu was both amused and exasperated when she heard these stories.

However, he is quite happy to see this kind of public opinion atmosphere.

After all, if the people are filled with fear and anxiety, it can easily lead to great social chaos.

Now that everyone is treating it as a story, it's actually a good thing.

What he was really concerned about was Liu Bowen being appointed as Imperial Censor.

It seems that Zhu Yuanzhang had some reservations about the system of multiple prime ministers in his previous life. He only ever had two prime ministers, one on the left and one on the right, and often there was only one prime minister.

This resulted in the prime minister wielding excessive power, which at one point threatened the imperial authority.

The fact that Liu Bowen has now been appointed as Imperial Censor clearly indicates a change in mindset.

This is also a good thing.

Moreover, this appointment also meant that Liu Bowen had reintegrated into the Ming Dynasty court.

Having another person willing to get things done is something to be happy about no matter how you look at it.

Zhu Yuanzhang sent Liu Bowen to investigate corruption in the Fengyang Imperial City.

He had to admit he admired the choice; it was truly brilliant.

This also shows that Zhu Yuanzhang had no intention of harming Li Shanchang, at least not now.

Just as he was pondering the changes in the court, his steward, Yuan Lang, ran over with a strange expression and said:
"Brother, a distinguished guest has arrived."

Ma Yu raised an eyebrow: "Distinguished guest? Who?"

It wasn't that he was arrogant; given his current status, those whom Yuan Lang would call distinguished guests were extremely rare.

Those who could be called distinguished guests would have been greeted with great courtesy by Yuan Lang long ago, and he wouldn't be acting like this now.

So, who is it?

Yuan Lang smiled mysteriously and said, "It's a young lady surnamed Wang."

Last name Wang?

Oh my god, could he be Guanyin's slave?

Why is she here?

But let's not worry about that for now, let's go and greet them.

So as not to lose courtesy.

Ma Yu quickly said, "What are you standing there for? Hurry up and push me to greet them."

(End of this chapter)