prosperous age

Outside the Meridian Gate of the Ming Imperial City, a large group of officials were blocked and unable to move forward.

They could no longer get in. Going further in would be a confidential area. Normally, if they reported to the cabinet, they could get in with just a notification, but not today.

Because not far from them, four benches were laid out in a row, and four people wearing only white shirts were tied directly on them.

They were naturally Wu Zhongxing, Zhao Yongxian and others who were singled out by Emperor Wanli to be beaten with a stick in the court.

At this time, their official uniforms and hats had been stripped off, and they were pressed on the bench wearing only their inner shirts.

There were two eunuchs standing in front and behind them, and eight eunuchs behind them holding long sticks, waiting for the order to execute.

Further ahead, several officials were talking to a eunuch from the palace.

"Eunuch Feng, please wait a little longer. Our sign has been submitted. Perhaps the situation can still be salvaged."

The Minister of War, Tan Lun, stopped the eunuch and tried to persuade him.

The eunuch in charge of the execution was none other than Feng Bao, the top eunuch in the inner court.

For such minor matters as caning in the court, there was no need for him to personally supervise the execution.

But recently, because of the "love-stealing" incident, he was so disgusted that he had to come and supervise in person.

In the final analysis, he just wanted to beat them up "severely" to vent his anger, for himself and for Zhang Juzheng.

But now, in front of him were not only the Minister of War Tan Lun, but also five or six of the Nine Ministers including the Minister of Personnel Wang Guoguang, and the Minister of Rites Ma Ziqiang, not to mention the dozens of court ministers of the fifth rank and above who were watching covetously in the distance.

There have long been rumors that he and Zhang Juzheng were in cahoots and instigated the emperor to "seize the love."

One can imagine how those officials looked at Feng Bao.

For most Ming Dynasty officials, the higher their rank, the more polite they were to Feng Bao, and the lower their rank, the more they disliked Feng Bao.

"Hey, gentlemen, we have already wasted quite a bit of time. If the Emperor wanted to release us, he would have sent a message long ago. You are now defying his order."

Several ministers spoke to him in a kind way, and Feng Bao did not want to get angry. He just reminded them that they were delaying the emperor's mission.

"It won't take long. Although we can't see the emperor, the two ministers have already gone in. Let's wait for news."

Ma Ziqiang spoke.

In fact, Ma Ziqiang was angry when he saw Feng Bao, because as the Minister of Rites, he had to wait before entering the palace to see the emperor. In some aspects, he had the same rights as the cabinet ministers and could meet the emperor directly.

The Minister of Rites is equivalent to half a cabinet minister.

But today, when he hurried here, he was stopped by the eunuch.

Without further ado, Ma Ziqiang guessed that it was Feng Bao who had someone do it, deliberately trying to embarrass him.

After all, Ma Ziqiang simply rejected Feng Bao's request at the beginning.

Only a coward like Feng Bao could seal off the palace.

"Humph, you say it so easily. These people really pissed off the emperor. So why not let them go so easily?"

Feng Bao got angry when he saw Ma Ziqiang. Although he had known this would happen, he still felt that it was a loss of face for him, Feng Daban.

I don’t know how Zhang Juzheng and Wei Guangde decided on such untactful people.

Afterwards, he even brought officials from the Ministry of Rites to find Zhang Juzheng and continued to persuade him to give up accepting the imperial edict and return to his hometown to observe the mourning period. If he was really persuaded by them, all of Feng Daban's hard work these days would be in vain.

No, we have to talk about this matter later and let Zhang Juzheng and others replace Ma Ziqiang.

Such a principled person cannot stay in the court.

However, he had no idea that Zhang Juzheng, Wei Guangde and others could interfere in the appointment and dismissal of court officials below the fourth rank, and could even make the decision with a single word.

But at the level of Shangshu, it is only possible to win over most of the Nine Ministers and gain the trust of the emperor.

During the Jiajing reign, Yan Song's power was encroaching on the government and the country. However, Emperor Jiajing still kept Wu Shan, who was at odds with Yan Song, as the Minister of Rites. This was a check and balance.

As for Wang Guoguang and others nearby, although they were also trying to comfort them, they mostly just watched from the sidelines.

They had a good relationship with Zhang Juzheng and had already reached high positions. They were not afraid of the influence after Zhang Juzheng left the court, but they also did not like these people to attack Zhang Juzheng wantonly.

In fact, these people privately reminded Zhang Juzheng repeatedly to think this matter over carefully. After all, the impact was too great, and the backlash from both the government and the public was somewhat unexpected.

It can be seen that even if Zhang Juzheng managed to get through this time, his prestige among the people had been lost, and he might be left with a bad reputation.

Of course, doing so also shows Zhang Juzheng's determination to stay in Beijing, otherwise he would never do so.

After all, their association with Zhang Juzheng was more of a relationship of mutual need.

The new policies implemented by Zhang Juzheng benefited the present and future generations. They were not fools.

Although, sometimes, for the sake of his own and his family's interests, he did not support Zhang Juzheng's decisions, he did not question the fairness of his decisions.

It is precisely for this reason that they can only admire Zhang Juzheng more for his courage to be the first and do things that others cannot do.

Therefore, when they saw those people who were about to be beaten, they actually looked down on them in their hearts.

Those who pursue fame and fortune are not worthy of this plan.

In fact, they hate them even more.

It was because these people repeatedly mentioned this matter for their own selfish interests that the matter of "stealing love" became complicated.

In fact, if there had not been the memorials from Wu Zhongxing, Zhao Yongxian and others, it would be hard to say whether the subsequent events would have happened.

The people on this side were talking to Feng Bao in a nice tone, trying to delay time as much as possible, while a large group of officials over there were staring at Feng Bao with cold brows.

Yes, in the eyes of loyal people, eunuchs are all bad things.

They, the civil officials, tried every means to teach the emperor to be a wise and enlightened emperor, but these eunuchs always sang the opposite tune.

After all, the emperor was more willing to listen to the eunuchs than to the civil servants, which made them very dissatisfied.

Those eunuchs whose basic ideas were similar to those of the civil servants were highly praised by them and were considered to be good eunuchs who had been educated by the teachings of sages.

Outside the Qianqing Palace, Wei Guangde and Zhang Siwei came out and stopped at the palace gate.

"Wei Ci Fu, His Majesty is determined to punish them. How can we explain this to you?"

Zhang Siwei spoke first.

"What explanation?"

Wei Guangde looked at Zhang Siwei, shook his head and smiled bitterly, "Thunder and rain are all grace from the emperor. If you anger His Majesty, you should have the courage to bear the punishment.

I don’t believe they didn’t take this into consideration when they submitted the report. Perhaps they just didn’t expect it to be so serious.”

Wei Guangde sneered disdainfully. He also looked down on Wu Zhongxing and the others. It was not easy to emulate Liu Tai and gain a good reputation.

They also want to gain a good reputation by impeaching the teacher, which will help them get promoted and make money. It might be better to wake them up sooner.

"Then let's do it now"

Although Zhang Siwei was confused, he still asked in a low voice.

"When you go to the Meridian Gate, you must bring the imperial edict with you."

Wei Guangde also felt a headache when he thought about what the little emperor had told him before leaving the palace.

All officials outside the Meridian Gate were required to watch the execution so that they would know the consequences of defying the emperor.

Wei Guangde came here this time just to go through the motions and had no intention of persuading anyone, but he never expected that he would end up taking such a job.

"Let's go to the Meridian Gate."

Wei Guangde said to Zhang Siwei.

"Ah, okay."

Zhang Siwei agreed, followed Wei Guangde half a body length behind, and walked towards the Meridian Gate together. "The little emperor has grown up and has his own ideas."

While walking, Wei Guangde was also thinking.

No wonder Emperor Wanli's temperament changed so much after he took power, especially his attitude towards Zhang Juzheng, which was a 180-degree turn.

You have to be careful when interacting with the little emperor in the future, so as not to get into trouble because of Zhang Juzheng.

Wei Guangde was not sure whether the last words were thought of by the little emperor himself or instructed by someone, so he would have to ask Chen Ju later.

Today in the palace, Chen Ju was only outside the hall, but there were too many people around him, so Wei Guangde couldn't go up to him to talk and find out what was going on.

But today the little emperor also reminded Wei Guangde that he should no longer look at people with the old perspective.

He is still the emperor and has his own thoughts.

Many of the things Zhang Juzheng taught the little emperor were to let him think for himself, but he didn't expect that after thinking, the little emperor would burn him to death first.

Soon, the Meridian Gate Tower appeared before them.

Without turning back to the cabinet, the two men walked straight towards the city wall.

When Wei Guangde and Zhang Siwei appeared in the Meridian Gate, the officials gathered outside the gate looked at them quietly, and the few people who had gathered around Feng Bao before also quickly walked towards them.

"How about lending money? What does your majesty say?"

Ma Ziqiang walked in front at a brisk pace and asked when he was a few steps away from Wei Guangde.

Wei Guangde took two steps forward and bowed to them, then sighed and said, "Your Majesty is really angry."

At this point, Wei Guangde looked around on the bench and saw Wu Zhongxing, then whispered to them: "You should all know what Wu Zhongxing said in his memorial. He directly accused them of destroying the principles of heaven and earth, which made His Majesty think that they were not only disrespectful to him, but also to Taizu, and questioned the ancestral system."

"what"

Ma Ziqiang let out a light cry and immediately covered his mouth.

He also saw those words, but he didn't think too deeply about them and just spoke the truth.

But unexpectedly, the young emperor saw a lot of disrespect for ancestral systems in the words of the civil officials, which made the Ministry of Rites most uncomfortable.

Normally, when such a memorial appears, the Ministry of Rites should submit an impeachment.

The "rituals and laws" that the Ministry of Rites claims to guard are not only the teachings of sages, but also the "ancestral system."

"Your Majesty has ordered that all officials outside the Meridian Gate must wait until the execution is over before leaving."

At this time, Wei Guangde spoke to them loudly again.

After finishing his words, Wei Guangde lowered his voice and said to Ma Ziqiang: "Looking back, the Ministry of Rites submitted a memorial to apologize. I think that although His Majesty is unhappy, he does not intend to blame the Ministry of Rites."

To question the seizure of love is actually to question the ancestral system.

The rules set by Zhu Yuanzhang were used by several subsequent dynasties. How could they be doubted casually?

Speaking of which, it was not a bad thing for Wu Zhongxing to get beaten.

After saying this, Wei Guangde and Zhang Siwei went to the group of officials over there and told them the emperor's decision.

"Mr. Wei."

Just when someone was about to speak, Wei Guangde raised his hand to stop them from talking and continued, "Your Majesty said that their memorials are full of human ethics and principles, but they are actually disloyal, unfilial, unkind and unjust people."

Wei Guangde stopped talking here and didn't continue.

Besides, we should scold these people for not being able to see the situation clearly and just making trouble.

They really thought that the emperor was young and easy to fool, and that they could scare the orphans and widows in the palace with their large numbers.

In fact, it was when Wei Guangde saw this group of people that he realized the reason for the palace's firm attitude.

Putting aside whether "seizing love" is right or wrong, if the palace really gives in this time because of the instigation of such a group of people, how will the emperor govern the country in the future?

All I can say is that maybe if a few officials plead for mercy, and seeing that they have a good attitude, they may be able to let them off lightly.

But given the current situation, the palace will definitely not let these people go.

Kill the chicken to scare the monkey.

Let all officials know that although there are orphans and widows in the palace, they cannot be threatened by anyone.

"Okay, let's all follow your orders.

It's no wonder, but it's all because Wu Zhongxing and his men's memorials contained many disrespectful words, which angered Your Majesty.

There were so many opposing petitions, but they were the only ones singled out for punishment."

Wei Guangde said this, but he knew in his heart that the little emperor was actually the one who would be shot at. These few people were the ones who led the trouble, so who else could he attack if not them?

Because many of the memorials from other people never even reached the little emperor.

However, Wei Guangde will not say these words, and most people here will not know them.

After pacifying the officials, Wei Guangde walked over to Feng Bao and told him the young emperor's intention.

"Hehe, how can the Holy Emperor be deceived by these clowns?"

Unexpectedly, Feng Bao spoke loudly at this time.

Wei Guangde felt very uncomfortable. It was you who bewitched the emperor and suppressed the memorial without showing it to the emperor.

However, even if they were seen, these four people would not be let off easily.

Again, the palace must show its support for Zhang Juzheng now, otherwise there will be more trouble in the future.

A prime minister who is not in harmony with the outer court but can firmly implement policies will make the palace feel more at ease.

However, a prime minister who has too close ties with the outer court may not necessarily be a good prime minister, and the situation may change at any time.

The situation Zhang Juzheng is facing now is welcomed by the inner court. Only in this way will Zhang Juzheng be more closely attached to the inner court, otherwise his position will be lost.

Later generations said that Empress Dowager Li, Feng Bao and Zhang Juzheng were the core iron triangle that held power in the Ming Dynasty, which is actually correct.

Don’t think that all the power is actually in the hands of Feng Bao and Zhang Juzheng. In order to stabilize this iron triangle, the inner court also took great pains.

This time, the "love seizure" seemed to be caused by their being deceived and misled by Feng Bao. How could we know that it was not a trap deliberately set up by Empress Dowager Li and Empress Dowager Chen in order to consolidate the imperial power?

Through this incident, the relationship between court officials and the prime minister was divided.

After that, Zhang Juzheng began to become harsh in his treatment of court officials, and the court officials' dissatisfaction with Zhang Juzheng grew.

"clap clap"

One after another, the sticks hit Wu Zhongxing and others on their buttocks. This was the imperial caning in the Ming Dynasty.

Someone in front was counting, someone was staring at the wooden sticks in their mouths, afraid that they would fall out, and the two people behind them were waving the court sticks and cheering hard.

After the execution was completed, some officials who were on good terms with them hurried forward to help them leave, while other officials did not disperse but surrounded Wei Guangde.

Wei Guangde was a little suspicious and didn't know why these people were like this.

Little did he know that just now, someone was secretly colluding and preparing to put him in as well.

"You're going to the Cabinet?"

Although I don’t know why they didn’t return to their respective government offices, I can’t chase them away.

After watching the execution here for a long time, maybe I've lost my taste.

"Let's go then."

Wei Guangde led all the officials into the Meridian Gate. This time no one stopped them, and they returned to the cabinet smoothly. (End of this chapter)