Da Ming: Father, step aside, I'll be the prime minister!

Chapter 23: Use barbarians to control barbarians and native people to govern themselves
Cheng Guogongfu.

Zhu Yinghuai leaned back on the rosewood daybed, listlessly holding a copy of "Travels in the South".

Zhu Yinghuai appears to be an uneducated and dissolute young man, but in reality, as the second son of the legitimate wife, he had long since lost his right to inherit the title.

Last year, his elder brother Zhu Yingzhen inherited the title and also had children.

It's not his turn anyway.
Even though Zhu Yinghuai was exceptionally intelligent from a young age and had a strong talent for politics, the fact that he was born a few years later was ultimately unchangeable.

Furthermore, since his ancestor Zhu Neng had passed down the title of Duke of Cheng, by his generation, his daily duties were nothing more than performing sacrifices to Heaven and Earth on behalf of the emperor and presiding over various ceremonies.

Opportunities to command an army are extremely limited.

What are you doing if you're not lying down?
Thanks to his ancestors' influence, Zhu Yinghuai, who was only sixteen years old, already held the honorary title of Fifth Rank Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Life naturally lost its purpose.

However, after reporting for duty at the Northern Garrison during the day, he would spend the rest of his time indulging in sensual pleasures.

"Young master, this is the latest storybook we bought from the West Market. It is said to be comparable to 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms' and 'Water Margin'."

The servant brought in a storybook bound in gold thread and presented it to Zhu Yinghuai in a fawning manner.

"There are actually such stories."

Zhu Yinghuai immediately became interested. He rolled off the couch, snatched the storybook, and read it for a long time.

He then threw the storybook at the servant's face.

"You dog-like thing, you don't even bother to read a storybook. This is half of Water Margin at the beginning, half of Jin Ping Mei at the end, and it even has content from Romance of the Western Chamber mixed in. I can write better than this. How dare you bring this kind of garbage to get in my way?"

The servant shrank back and said, "Young master, there are only so many storybooks on the market. You've basically read them all. Where am I supposed to find so many more for you?"

"You dare to talk back!"

Enraged, Zhu Yinghuai kicked him.

Just as he was about to teach this incompetent servant a lesson...

A pig-like scream came from outside the door.

"Young master! Young master! I bought it for you! The second edition of the Wanli Xinbao, which just came out this morning, is still warm and smells of ink!"

A servant stumbled in, waving the newspaper high in his hand.

Zhu Yinghuai pounced on the copy of the "Wanli New Edition" like a wolf seeing a lamb.

He was so eager that he didn't care what the headlines were; he immediately looked at the section on vernacular novels.

In the previous version, the story of "The Gold Case" ended there; this version finally reveals the truth.

The next section then unfolds, beginning with the case of "Five Auspicious Clouds".

The captivating and dramatic plot immediately caught Zhu Yinghuai's eye, and he nodded repeatedly in approval.

"That's what makes a storybook!"

Influenced by the novel "Detective Dee of the Tang Dynasty", Zhu Yinghuai's taste has become increasingly discerning lately. In particular, after eating fine bran, he can no longer swallow coarse grains.

However, the content that can be serialized in a newspaper is ultimately limited.

After reading every word of the newspaper, Zhu Yinghuai felt as if his body had been hollowed out, and he collapsed onto the daybed.

He angrily said, "This Zhang Shiyuan is always good at keeping people in suspense. Can't he just send it all at once?"

Despite saying this, Zhu Yinghuai cherished the newspaper very much, reading its contents, even some of the advertisements, very carefully.

After all, compared to the inferior publications on the market, the shop advertisements in the Wanli Xinbao were refreshing.

However, Zhu Yinghuai paid little attention to things like the imperial calendar and commodity prices, as they were of no use to him.

They naturally tend to ignore it.

Finally, Zhu Yinghuai's gaze lingered on the headline content.

The story was serialized at the very end of the page. Zhu Yinghuai hadn't noticed it before, but now it startled him.

He blinked, somewhat incredulous at the contents of the newspaper.

"Is Zhang Shiyuan out of his mind? You dog-like Zhang Shiyuan, if you have the guts, don't ruin my reading of the storybook!"

Zhu Yinghuai blurted out, looking furious.

Because the front page headline of this Wanli Xinbao newspaper was clearly "On the Reform of Native Chieftains and the Replacement of Native Chieftains with Imperial Officials"!
Zhu Yinghuai had seen countless discussions about the court's affairs in the streets, but he had never seen such an open discussion of the court's affairs!
This is a topic that the officials in the court have been discussing endlessly for a long time.

Despite his anger, Zhu Yinghuai still focused and carefully examined the contents.

"We humbly acknowledge the widespread power and virtue of our Holy Dynasty. However, the southwestern barbarians, though incorporated into our territory, still retain their unique customs." "The policy of replacing native chieftains with appointed officials is indeed a foundation for consolidating our rule, but it still needs to be adapted to changing circumstances, with adjustments made as needed."

Having read memorials before, Zhu Yinghuai instinctively sensed that this article adopted the format of current court memorials.

Some folk sayings and customs were probably created to accommodate the reading habits of ordinary people in newspapers.

"Governing local chieftains is like controlling water; dredging is worse than blocking, and guiding is worse than dredging."

"Firstly, by suspending a sharp blade over their necks—a small, elite force was dispatched to the southwestern border, not for conquest, but to cultivate land and train troops, serving as a deterrent."

"Secondly, they bound their feet with gold thread—implementing a policy of using barbarians to control barbarians, dividing their internal personnel, treating the natives well, cracking down on the chieftains, and promising generous rewards to those who voluntarily surrendered to the court."

"Thirdly, to cultivate their minds with classical texts—the Imperial Academy would increase the number of students supported by local officials, but their studies would require them to recite in Mandarin. Three years later, these sons of local chieftains who could speak Mandarin and wore official robes would be sent back to their hometowns to preside over the work of the chieftains and implement local self-governance. Their local language blessings would be allowed to incorporate passages from the Four Books and Five Classics."

There were seven or eight relevant documents, which left Zhu Yinghuai dumbfounded.

The rest are still old news, such as sending elite troops to deter and using barbarians to control barbarians. In fact, the Ming Dynasty has always followed this practice, but Zhang Yunxiu's version is more detailed and systematic.

But the third point is frightening. The Ming Dynasty has always thought about governing the Tusi (local chieftains) based on the idea that those who are not of our race must have different intentions.

Who would have thought of such a top-level plan as "indigenous self-governance"?

"This plan can be matched with the Edict of Grace!"

Zhu Yinghuai slammed his hand on the table, keenly sensing the importance of the article's content.

He was well-versed in history and knew all too well how difficult it was to solve related problems, and Zhang Yunxiu's plan...
"Is it permissible to include passages from the Four Books and Five Classics?"

This is not education; it is clearly turning Confucian ethics into lukewarm water, slowly swallowing up all the chieftains in the southwest!
Under the traditional Confucian teachings of Heaven, Earth, Ruler, Parents, and Teacher, how could the chieftains of the Southwest not obey?
Zhu Yinghuai could already imagine the sons of the chieftains, dressed in their robes, reciting the Great Learning in the Imperial Academy.

He shuddered, finding Zhang Yunxiu somewhat terrifying.

"Just who is this kid? When did Zhang Jiangling produce a child prodigy? If this article gets out..."

A flurry of thoughts raced through his mind, then Zhu Yinghuai gave a self-deprecating laugh. He was nothing more than a carefree young master from a duke's mansion.

Why bother with all that?

He lay back down on the daybed, stretched, and couldn't resist picking up the newspaper again to read through its contents once more.

He uttered a sigh.

"I wonder how the officials in the court will react to this article? If we add the conflict with Zhang Jiangling to the mix, that would be quite interesting."

A mocking smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

During the Wanli reign, regular court sessions were typically held on the 3rd, 6th, and 9th of each month.

Compared to his lax governance in the later years of his reign, the Wanli Emperor, who was still under the pressure of the "three great mountains" (imperialism, feudalism, and bureaucratic capitalism), was still quite diligent, and he almost never missed the nine court sessions a month.

Today is March 23rd. Even though a court meeting had been held a few days ago, the court assembly was still convened as scheduled.

At the beginning of the hour of Mao (5-7 AM), just as the sky above Huangji Gate began to lighten with the first hint of dawn, the palace gates opened.

The ministers, who had already set off at dawn, filed in one after another.

Zhang Juzheng did not ride in a palanquin today, but walked in alone. Compared to his haggard appearance a few days ago, his face had clearly regained a lot of color.

Shen Shixing saw the En Mansion from afar, caught up with Zhang Juzheng in a few steps, and whispered in his ear.

“Your Excellency, the attacks on the new policies and you have been intensifying lately. I think this matter is not so simple. At today's court meeting, the officials will not let it go. You must be careful.”

In the Ming Dynasty, memorials to the emperor had to first go through the Office of Transmission, then be drafted by the Grand Secretariat, and finally be submitted to the emperor for approval.

Therefore, almost all impeachment memorials would reach the cabinet and be seen immediately.

Officials knew that Zhang Juzheng was the Grand Secretary, yet they still dared to send impeachment memorials to the cabinet as if they were mere scraps of paper.

Before Zhang Juzheng had even fallen, this pack of hungry wolves was already impatient, eager to come up and tear off a few pieces of flesh.

Two years earlier, no one in the imperial court would have dared to do this.

Times have changed. Zhang Juzheng is no longer the "Grand Secretary Zhang" who could enrage the emperor and have dozens of people flogged in court.

Zhang Juzheng continued walking, stepping over one bluestone step after another, and answered calmly.

"If they want to impeach, let them impeach; it won't cause any trouble."

They seem to completely disregard any opposition.

Shen Shixing lowered his body and followed with small steps, saying, "My lord, I think this turmoil is not just about your son taking advantage of the situation. People like Yang Sizhi and Wei Yunzhen, if they didn't have someone behind them, how could they dare to be so presumptuous?"

Zhang Juzheng suddenly stopped in his tracks.

(End of this chapter)