How can one be Emperor Chongzhen without money?

Chapter 2 My Money! It's All Mine! (Please add to your favorites and read on!)

The echoes of the coronation ceremony still lingered over the Forbidden City, but Zhu Youjian, who had just changed into mourning clothes, already had his heart set on the Kunning Palace. There, he met his "older sister-in-law," whom he hadn't seen for over fifty years.

"Go to Kunning Palace." He said in a low voice, directly interrupting Wang Chengen's request for instructions regarding the subsequent ceremonial procedures.

"This servant obeys the decree." Wang Chengen immediately bowed, then hesitated for a moment, "Your Majesty, according to regulations, ceremonial regalia must be prepared..."

“No need,” Zhu Youjian said decisively. “I need to travel light and keep to myself so I can see my sister-in-law as soon as possible.” He paused, then added, “Don’t disturb anyone.”

Upon receiving the decree, Wang Chengen quickly dismissed most of his entourage, leaving only a few trusted eunuchs and guards. Zhu Youjian strode out of the Qianqing Palace, his steps almost jogging, and passed through the Qianqing Gate, leaving Wang Chengen and the others to follow closely behind.

The autumn wind swept across the high red walls of the alley, swirling up a few withered leaves. Zhu Youjian slowed his pace, his gaze following the falling leaves, his thoughts drifting away.

His birth mother, Liu, passed away early, and his memories of her were already hazy. It was his elder brother, Tianqi, the one later known as the "Carpenter Emperor," and his sister-in-law, Zhang Yan, whom he was about to meet, who gave him a home. Tianqi may have loved playing with wood, but he was extremely good to his younger brother. His sister-in-law, Zhang Yan, treated him more like a mother.

In his past life... when the city fell and the country perished, he personally killed his wife and daughter, but he still couldn't protect this elder sister-in-law who was like a mother to him!
“Never again in this life!” A fierce determination surged in his chest. “In this life, I am a hero who has fought my way through the officialdom of Handong and brought down countless corrupt officials! I know all about ideologies and doctrines! Li Zicheng and the Jianzhou Tartars will never touch a hair on my family again!” A belief in shouldering the responsibility of the two capitals and thirteen provinces of the Ming Dynasty raged in his chest.

He even considered a contingency plan: if all else failed, he could secretly send his sister-in-law and children to Nanjing months, even a year, in advance! With the Yangtze River as a natural barrier, half the country under his control, and the Zheng family's ships… No! He immediately extinguished the thought. "No! In this life, I will defend the capital! Defend the ancestral legacy… even if it leads to regional warlordism! My sister-in-law will not go anywhere!"

A side hall of Kunning Palace.

A plain white gauze curtain hung low, and the candlelight flickered on the bronze crane lampstand. Empress Zhang, dressed in coarse hemp mourning clothes and without makeup, sat alone on a low couch by the window. Tianqi's departure had taken away her greatest support, and her heart ached as if it were being torn apart; tears once again soaked her clothes.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty!" A palace maid rushed in. "His Majesty has arrived! He's already outside the palace gates!"

Zhang Yan trembled slightly upon hearing the voice. She quickly wiped away the tears on her face with her sleeve, suppressing her emotions. It was expected that the new emperor would come to see his sister-in-law according to etiquette after his ascension to the throne, but she was somewhat surprised by how quickly and urgently he had come.

She stood up, tidied her hair and mourning clothes in front of the blurry bronze mirror, and tried to straighten her back. She was the widow of the Tianqi Emperor, the former Empress of the Ming Dynasty. No matter how much her heart ached, she could not lose her dignity in front of Prince Xin... or the current Emperor.

She had just stepped inside the palace gate when Zhu Youjian appeared at the entrance.

More than fifty years! More than fifty years of longing and guilt brought Zhu Youjian to his throat when he saw this haggard yet still dignified face.

"Sister-in-law..." The word was squeezed out of her throat with difficulty.

Empress Zhang looked at the new emperor before her, whose face bore a striking resemblance to her deceased husband. Now dressed in mourning clothes and with a sorrowful expression, he stood before her, instantly reminding her of the departed Emperor Tianqi.

But she was, after all, the Empress who had once ruled the world. Zhang Yan, fighting back tears that nearly spilled from her eyes, solemnly lowered herself before Zhu Youjian, according to palace rules:

"Your Majesty, I pay my respects. Long live Your Majesty."

Emperor Chongzhen watched as the figure in white bowed to him, once again confirming that this was not a dream… everything had truly begun anew. He took a deep breath, suppressing his surging emotions, and, with the most impeccable court etiquette, bowed deeply to Empress Zhang, his voice hoarse yet clear:
"Please rise, Your Majesty... No need for formalities. I... have come to see you."

Their eyes met, and the hall fell silent.

Zhang Yan looked at Zhu Youjian. His eyebrows and eyes still resembled those of the Prince of Xin, but there was a kind of heaviness she had never seen before, as if he had experienced decades of trials and tribulations.

As Zhu Youjian looked at Zhang Yan, her young face overlapped with the tragic and resolute face he remembered before the collapse of the heavens, stirring up a storm of emotions within him.

Silence weighed on their hearts like a stone.

After a long while, Zhu Youjian seemed to come back to his senses. His gaze swept over the palace servants standing at the corner of the hall.

Empress Zhang immediately understood and gently raised her hand: "All of you may leave. Wait outside." "Yes." The palace servants, as if granted a pardon, quietly withdrew.

Zhu Youjian then gave Wang Chengen, who was standing respectfully by the door with his head bowed, a meaningful look. Wang Chengen understood, bowed deeply, and silently withdrew, gently closing the door behind him.

Only the uncle and his sister-in-law remained in the hall.

Zhu Youjian took two steps forward, stopping a few paces away from Zhang Yan. Looking into her reddened eyes, his voice was low and solemn:
"Your Majesty, Wei Zhongxian has wielded power for many years, his influence is deep and his cronies are everywhere in and out of the court... This man is a great menace, and I will deal with him!"

Upon hearing the name "Wei Zhongxian," Zhang Yan's previously sorrowful eyes suddenly sharpened, revealing a deep-seated disgust and hatred that was not concealed, and her voice turned cold:
"Your Majesty, please be wise! The late Emperor... the late Emperor was benevolent. If he hadn't been deceived and seduced by the eunuch Wei and that poisonous woman Madam Ke, indulging in frivolous pleasures, how could he... how could he..." She couldn't continue, her eyes reddening again. Forcing back tears, she paused and said, "These two have bewitched the Emperor's heart, corrupted the court, formed cliques for personal gain, and persecuted loyal officials. Our Great Ming Dynasty has been ruined by these eunuchs! If Your Majesty will eliminate this scourge, I... will die in peace!"

Zhu Youjian looked at his sister-in-law. Her attitude towards the eunuch faction was the same as in his previous life—pure hatred and advocacy for severe punishment. Emperor Chongzhen of that time had also been fiercely opposed to evil, and later, in the case of the treasonous eunuchs, over two hundred members of the faction were convicted and their homes confiscated…

The thought of "confiscating property" immediately triggered Zhu Youjian's mental calculations, making him the "Deputy Director Zhu" he was after. In his thirty years in officialdom, he had handled countless major cases…

Based on his memories and experience from his previous life, he quickly calculated: a large corrupt group that had been entrenched in the central government for many years had more than 200 core members. Even if each person only embezzled an average of 100,000 taels (which he considered "clean"), the total amount should still be more than 20 million taels! As the number one corrupt official, Wei Zhongxian's assets must have started at least in the eight figures!
But what was the result in the previous life? They raided Wei Zhongxian's house and only found a few thousand taels of silver! What a joke!
"That's my money! My money!" Zhu Youjian roared inwardly. "The people below have been skimming off my money layer by layer, each taking a cut. I get one, and you get nine, and I can tolerate that! But all I get are a few thousand taels? Is this some kind of beggar's money? What kind of lifestyle does that old dog Wei Zhongxian have? The furniture he uses, the food he eats, the clothes he wears—everything is worth thousands of taels! This confiscation of his property is an insult to my intelligence!" A surge of anger at being tricked by his subordinates rushed to his head.

Therefore, Wei Zhongxian must be dealt with! If he isn't, he won't amassed gold coins on his own; if he had any conscience, he wouldn't have been greedy in the first place. If he doesn't amassed gold coins, where will the initial funding for the Ming Dynasty's longevity reforms come from? But he can't be "dealt with on a large scale," only "detained." Under no circumstances should it be turned into an officially designated treason case or handed over to the three judicial departments for severe investigation.

Because "detention" was something the emperor could control himself.

Once the case of treason is settled, or transferred to the Three Judicial Offices, he will lose control of what happens next. He is a lone figure with at most a few trusted confidants; he simply cannot "freeze" Wei Zhongxian's vast fortune. Transferring it to the Three Judicial Offices, or having the Emperor decide the case and then having the Embroidered Uniform Guard confiscate it... that eight-figure fortune will simply vanish in the process. Who can he complain to?
This is the Ming Dynasty, not Handong...

As the emperor, he couldn't possibly drag a few eunuchs like Wang Chengen and Cao Huachun to Wei Zhongxian's house to move things, could he? What kind of decorum would that be? Besides, they couldn't move much anyway.

Moreover, after "detaining" Wei Zhongxian, Emperor Chongzhen could not only get money, but also give Wei Zhongxian a chance to "perform well" and win leniency.

As long as Wei Zhongxian “behaves” well, shows a sincere attitude of admitting his guilt, and is truly repentant—and most importantly, honestly and without reservation “returns” all the enormous wealth he and his cronies had embezzled, including gold, silver, valuables, antiques, paintings, land deeds, shops, and other valuables, to the Imperial Treasury—then Zhu Youjian might be able to “give him a way out.” He could be allowed to serve as a model of “good dog of the Ming Dynasty” and continue to rake in money for the Ming emperor. He would always have to do it; Wei Zhongxian has experience, and even if he's incompetent, he can still be used.

Thinking of this, Zhu Youjian nodded: "Don't worry, sister-in-law, I know what I'm doing."

He lowered his voice and continued, "The most important thing right now is to 'invite' Madam Ke out of Xian'an Palace."

Zhang Yan was slightly taken aback: "Your Majesty means... to do it now?"

"Exactly!" Zhu Youjian said decisively. "Wei Zhongxian is cunning and shrewd, and he leaves no room for error in his actions, but Madam Ke is domineering and arrogant, and has committed numerous evil deeds. She is the key to our breakthrough!"

His gaze was sharp, and his voice was even lower: "I have devised a plan. I will forge an imperial edict from the late Emperor, praising Madam Ke for her nurturing, and grant her a residence outside the palace to live out her days in comfort. The late Emperor's coffin is still in the Qianqing Palace. Madam Ke should, both morally and logically, enter the palace to express her gratitude for the Emperor's grace. At that time, my sister-in-law can issue an imperial decree to summon her to the Zhaoren Hall of the Qianqing Palace, where my sister-in-law's people will read the edict, and then she can be arrested on the spot!"

A glint of light flashed in Empress Zhang's eyes: "Your Majesty's plan is brilliant! Madam Ke has always been power-hungry and greedy. Hearing of the 'imperial decree,' she will surely be overjoyed and will definitely come to the palace to express her gratitude!"

Zhu Youjian nodded slightly: "I will have Cao Huachun lead men to provide support around the Qianqing Palace and cut off communication. As for arresting and detaining people..." He looked at Empress Zhang, "...we must use your sister-in-law's trusted confidants, absolutely reliable people!"

Empress Zhang took a deep breath, her eyes turning cold: "My old palace maid Qin and Zhao An, the steward of Kunning Palace, are both my confidantes and deeply resent Ke Wei! They also have several capable subordinates who can handle this matter!"

A hint of satisfaction appeared in Chongzhen's eyes: "Good! Once we detain Madam Ke, I will interrogate her personally. I guarantee that we can use her confession to bring down this powerful eunuch Wei Zhongxian little by little!"

Empress Zhang nodded slowly, her voice low and firm: "Your Majesty, I will draft an edict to make that wicked woman...walk right into the trap!"

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(End of this chapter)