Ming Dynasty: I, Yan Maoqing, am truly radiating auspicious energy!

Chapter 57 The Emperor with No Name
Qianqing Palace.

"What kind of brilliant scheme is this? Why is Yan Maoqing keeping it so secret?"

After reading the handwritten record presented by Wang Zuo, the Grand Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial, Zhu Houcong couldn't help but utter a vulgarity unbecoming of his status.

"..."

Huang Jin stood silently to the side, not daring to respond easily, only secretly cursing in his heart.

He couldn't remember how many years it had been since the emperor had uttered such vulgarities; it seemed to be more than twenty years ago, when the emperor was still the heir apparent of the Xingwang Mansion.

Children of that age often don't feel ashamed of swearing; on the contrary, they take pride in it.

However... since the palace examination, has the name Yan Maoqing appeared a little too frequently in the Qianqing Palace?

Not only is the frequency relatively high, but it also seems to last quite a long time.

Even though a month or two has passed, the Emperor still mentions this person frequently.

Under normal circumstances, such an unknown newly appointed scholar would have been forgotten by the emperor long ago.

If you don't believe me, ask the Emperor now who the third-place finisher in this imperial examination was, and he definitely won't be able to tell you. He might not even remember who the top scholar was...

"Huang Ban, come and take a look. Tell me whether Yan Maoqing's so-called ingenious plan is completely useless or has some merit?"

Zhu Houcong wasn't satisfied with just cursing Huang Jin alone, so he glanced at Huang Jin and immediately decided that it was better to share the joy than to enjoy it alone.

"Yes."

Huang Jin snapped out of his daze and quickly bowed to take the handbook and examine it.

After looking at it carefully once,

Huang Jin was completely baffled, feeling like he had been tricked by something strange, and he really had something to say.

Seeing that Zhu Houcong was waiting for his reply, he carefully considered his words before speaking with great restraint:

"Your Majesty, although I am not knowledgeable about military and national affairs, I also feel that this so-called ingenious plan is somewhat childish and lacks any corresponding evidence. It seems to be nothing more than wishful thinking."

"Is there nothing commendable about it?"

Zhu Houcong continued to press on with a teasing expression.

Huang Jin hesitated for a moment, then said cautiously:
"This...this servant really can't see it, please give me some pointers, Your Majesty."

"Hehe, in my opinion, the greatest merit of this so-called ingenious plan is that it does not cost a single soldier or a single tael of silver. With just one person's clever words, it is possible to temporarily intimidate the Tartars and at least bring the Ming Dynasty several months or even a year of peace."

Zhu Houcong said with a smile.

"What Your Majesty says is true..."

After thinking about it carefully, Huang Jin realized that it made sense.

It only fooled the Tartars for a while, and was far from the "once and for all" solution mentioned in the ingenious plan.

Moreover, once the Tartars realize what's happening, they will likely become enraged and launch even more frequent and fierce attacks, for which the Ming Dynasty will also pay the price.

The fundamental reason why the Tartars led their army south across the pass was that they sent envoys to request tribute, which was not only flatly rejected by the Ming Dynasty, but the Ming also detained the Tartar envoys and offered a high reward for the heads of Ji Nang and Altan Khan, which enraged the Tartars...

In Huang Jin's heart, the Tartars were afraid of his power but not of his virtue, and no agreement could bring peace.

The most orthodox strategy to deal with them should be to stop the war with war, just like Emperor Wu of Han did, and to launch a proactive attack with the two great weapons of the Han Dynasty to completely cripple and destroy the Tartars.

Unfortunately, this was also just wishful thinking on his part.

After all, firstly, the emperor is not Emperor Wu of Han (this cannot be said aloud, or the entire clan will be exterminated; even in one's mind, one must repeat it again to avoid accidentally letting it slip one day)... Secondly, the previous emperors did not leave the emperor a large inheritance like Emperor Wen and Emperor Jing of Han; how can one fight without money?
Secondly, the Ming Dynasty doesn't have any of the "Twin Heroes of the Han Dynasty," at least not yet, so how can it fight them?
Thirdly, the border defense of the Ming Dynasty has been neglected for many years. Not to mention those small border outposts, even the nine important towns along the border have seen a large number of registered households fleeing. In some places, it is said that "those registered are merely on paper, and those in households are just shadows in the air." The fighting capacity of such an army is unimaginable. How can they fight without soldiers?
The emperor was also suffering in his heart.

He was already overwhelmed by the lack of troops.

The day before yesterday, I forced Duke Guo Xun of Yiguo to sort out military affairs, precisely for this matter. I didn't expect a complete cure, but even a slight improvement would be acceptable.

Unexpectedly, Guo Xun, whom the emperor had personally promoted, deserted his post and refused to accept the order no matter what.

However, in truth, this matter is not entirely Guo Xun's fault.

Previously, the emperor had sent many people to handle this matter, but when they returned, they either only caught a couple of small fish to get by, or they didn't even make it due to various unforeseen circumstances. Some even died mysteriously. Who would dare to continue wading into this mess?
Everyone says that the emperor is the supreme ruler.

Even the emperor could not possibly clarify military affairs based solely on the military registers submitted by his subordinates; he still needed trusted people to investigate and handle them.

It is said that the emperor is so engrossed in Taoist practices that he has neglected state affairs.

But who saw that even at this time, the Emperor was still reviewing memorials by candlelight? At least half of the drafts submitted by the cabinet were personally approved by the Emperor.

Ultimately, this world belongs to the emperor. Whether in public or private matters, who in the world cares more about the world than the emperor?

Thinking about all this, and seeing the slightly tired smile on Zhu Houcong's face, Huang Jin's nose inexplicably felt sore...

"Are these all recent memorials impeaching Guo Xun?"

Zhu Houcong suddenly picked up a thick stack of memorials and asked.

"Exactly."

Huang Jin quickly sniffed and stepped forward to introduce the memorials he had personally arranged one by one.
"These are the memorials from the Duke of Yiguo, impeaching the cabinet because of the leak of Yan Maoqing's examination papers; these are the policy proposals on border defense submitted by the officials recently because of the Tartars crossing the pass and moving south; and these are the official documents on income and expenditure accounts submitted by the Minister of Revenue on the Emperor's orders..."

"Go, immediately order someone to summon Guo Xun to the palace, but do not make a fuss."

Zhu Houcong nodded, interrupting him.
"As for Duan Chaoyong's matter... it's time for him, the Duke of Yi whom I personally appointed, to give me an explanation."

……

An hour later, tonight the moon will be dark and the wind will be high.

"This wicked subject deserves to die a thousand deaths!"

Guo Xun, who had only recently adopted Yan Maoqing as his godson, was ashen-faced. He had removed his official hat and shoes, and with disheveled hair, he knelt before Zhu Houcong, kowtowing repeatedly.
"Your Majesty, please see the truth. This matter was absolutely not the work of this sinister minister. Someone must have bribed Duan Chaoyong's disciple to try and frame this sinister minister..."

"Oh!"

Zhu Houcong slammed his hand on the table, his eyes flashing with a cold light:

"Could it be that Duan Chaoyong has also been bribed, willing to risk his entire family's lives to slander you this time?!"

"!!!"

Guo Xun's body trembled, and he immediately fell silent, leaving only his raised buttocks trembling.

"Humph……"

Zhu Houcong then let out a heavy dragon breath, the sound slightly calmer.
“You are now nearing seventy, and you were personally promoted by me. I really can’t bear to kill you, so I will give you one last chance to redeem yourself.”

"I have come up with a brilliant plan today. Take a look."

"?"

Huang Jin, who was standing to the side, was taken aback when he heard this. Hadn't the emperor just recently called it a "bird-like scheme"?

(End of this chapter)