prosperous age

The officialdom in Beijing today is constantly being shocked by huge news.

It's more than just shocking; it's a far cry from the initial tremor.

In the morning, officials were shocked by the retirement of Wang Guoguang, the Minister of Personnel. At that time, there was much discussion about this in various government offices in the capital, and there were quite a few people who were dissatisfied with it.

The prevailing public opinion at the time was something Wei Guangde hadn't anticipated: dissatisfaction with the cabinet.

Wei Guangde drafted the imperial edict according to the emperor's approval and then sent it back to the Directorate of Ceremonial. After that, it was approved by the Six Ministries. In fact, this process contained a lot of things that outside officials did not know about, and it was a power struggle among the high-ranking officials of the Ming Dynasty.

They were unaware of these details, but they did know that Wang Guoguang had been impeached by Feng Bao, and that the cabinet should have directly rejected such an imperial edict.

When did these civil officials have to consider the whims of the inner court eunuchs, whose thoughts could actually influence the fate of a second-rank official?

Naturally, Grand Secretary Wei Guangde was the first to be blamed for this being a dereliction of duty.

The Grand Secretary should be a role model for all officials. In matters involving the interests of high-ranking civil servants, he may be ousted by infighting among civil servants, but he should never be removed from office due to interference from eunuchs.

Thinking of Feng Bao gathering his subordinates, and how they would probably be celebrating today, all the civil officials were seething with hatred. Naturally, they wouldn't have anything nice to say about Wei Guangde's words.

Some are even considering impeaching the new prime minister to bring him to his senses.

Don't try to keep your position as Grand Secretary by flattering the Emperor and refraining from speaking out for your civil service group.

They would not support a prime minister like that.

Unexpectedly, the situation suddenly changed in the afternoon.

First came the news that Feng Bao's residence had been surrounded by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, and then his house was ransacked.

They mistook the Imperial Guards' raid on Feng's residence for a general confiscation of property, since the situations were quite similar, and outsiders naturally had no way of knowing the inside story.

Moreover, the changes at the scene more than two hours later confirmed their suspicions: Feng Bao's home had indeed been ransacked.

Large wooden crates were carried out of the mansion by the Imperial Guards; these were, of course, the confiscated money, nothing more to say about that.

So that evening, everyone talked about it over tea and after dinner.

Many people also connect these two events and conclude that Grand Secretary Wei's plan was meticulous, using Minister of Personnel Wang Guoguang and Grand Eunuch Feng Bao as a pair.

Despite the initial dissatisfaction with the removal of Wang Guoguang, and the belief that the cabinet should side with the civil officials and fight against the palace eunuchs, it is understandable that people were initially unhappy with the removal of Wang Guoguang.

But in reality, most officials are just watching the show.

They knew how much pressure Zhang Juzheng had put on them back then.

Zhang Juzheng was under such pressure largely thanks to Feng Bao, who was brought down this time.

These two are completely in cahoots.

Although they knew, no one dared to say anything.

Zhang Juzheng, who was in charge of the Six Ministries, effectively broke the sharp blade of the Censorate officials who were supposed to supervise high-ranking officials.

Although the Censorate still had fighting power, and Zhang Juzheng could not affect everyone, the most important department to impeach him and issue an imperial edict was the Six Ministries.

If the cabinet plots against officials, the Six Ministries and the Censorate can stand together and reject memorials, which can greatly limit the cabinet's power.

However, after Zhang Juzheng took control of the Six Ministries, the censors were no longer able to control the cabinet, so naturally no one dared to challenge Zhang Juzheng and Feng Bao.

It's fair to say that everyone privately harbored resentment towards Zhang Juzheng and Feng Bao.

Those policies that harmed their interests were devised by these two individuals. As civil officials, they undermined other civil officials, yet they claimed it was for the sake of the court and the country.

Now, seeing Zhang Juzheng's faction fighting amongst themselves and Feng Bao, everyone is naturally happy to watch the spectacle.

Therefore, when the outcome was reversed, people began to suspect that Grand Secretary Wei Guangde had set a trap to ruin both groups of people they didn't get along with.

Chief Minister Wei allowed them to implicate each other, exposing their crimes, and then dealt a decisive blow, bringing both groups down from their posts and expelling them from officialdom.

In fact, such speculation existed, but they were unaware of the division within the Ming Dynasty's upper echelons at that time, especially as Zhang Siwei began to subtly establish his own faction, and the entire Feng-Zhang power had split into three parts.

This group consisted of Zhang Juzheng's close associates, with Wang Guoguang leading the officials in the court. This time, they have completely lost power and fallen.

The other group consisted of those who had brought down Feng Bao, led by Vice Minister Wang Zhuan. As news of Feng Bao's imprisonment and the confiscation of his property spread, everyone lived in constant fear.

Finally, there are the weakest among them, namely those people whom Zhang Siwei has recruited.

The weakest force here is not because Zhang Siwei has little influence, but because he has won over the fewest officials who originally belonged to Zhang Juzheng's faction.

Backed by his vast wealth, Zhang Siwei had long ago secretly woven a large network, but it remained hidden from Zhang Juzheng's brilliance.

It had only been a short time since Zhang Juzheng died, so the officials certainly couldn't have imagined that in such a short time, the political legacy he left behind would have already fallen apart and collapsed.

In particular, when Feng Bao had someone impeach Wang Guoguang, he also dragged Zhang Siwei into the mess. In their eyes, this was naturally Feng Bao's move against Zhang's faction. First, he dealt with Wang Guoguang, and next, he should take action against the Second Grand Secretary Zhang Siwei.

The impeachment of Feng Bao was naturally a counterattack by Zhang's faction, since no one would sit idly by and wait to be killed.

What everyone saw then was that Wang Guoguang was dismissed from office, Feng Bao was arrested, and both the Feng and Zhang factions suffered heavy losses.

In particular, Feng Baoyi's faction was basically finished after the downfall of its leader.

Upon closer inspection, it seemed that only Grand Secretary Wei Guangde remained uninvolved, eliminating the two groups that restricted his power and ultimately becoming the beneficiary.

Naturally, everyone would think that this was the Grand Secretary's scheme, deliberately instigating infighting between the two groups so that he could reap the benefits in the end.

As for Zhang Siwei, they actually considered him to be part of Zhang's faction.

When Wei Guangde drafted an edict in the cabinet to deal with Wang Guoguang, Zhang Siwei did not step forward to stop him. This clearly shows that Zhang Siwei had been suppressed by Chief Minister Wei and had lost his voice in the cabinet, which was a sign that he had lost power.

Wei Guangde was certainly aware of these changes in his statements.

He was a little nervous around noon, after all, it involved the reputation of all the officials. This might not matter to ordinary officials, but it was very important to the chief minister.

That's why the Grand Secretary is the head of all officials. If his subordinates have doubts about him, the people's hearts will be scattered, and the team will be difficult to lead.

Wei Guangde originally intended to sell Zhang Siwei, but unexpectedly, the emperor dealt with Wang Guoguang and Feng Bao in one day, which salvaged his reputation.

At this time, Wei Guangde was receiving his old friend Zeng Shengwu in his residence.

"Shan Dai, is there absolutely no room for maneuver in this matter?"
"Could the Cabinet perhaps speak to His Majesty about how he has served the nation diligently for decades, and how can he be treated like this?"

Zeng Shengwu's plea to Wei Guangde was actually a response to the punishment of Wang Guoguang. In the eyes of some officials in Beijing, the Wanli Emperor was somewhat heartless and ungrateful.

Yes, he was a Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) in the 22nd year of the Jiajing reign, and had served the court for many years, yet he was stripped of his official rank and reduced to a commoner.

No matter how big a mistake Wang Guoguang made, dismissing him from office is enough; there's no need to strip him of his birth status as well.

Of course, such thoughts may not necessarily be for Wang Guoguang's sake; perhaps they also reflect a desire to leave himself a way out.

After all, people in officialdom are often not in control of their own destiny, and no one can be sure when they will repeat the mistakes of Wang Guoguang.

You can lose your official position, but you can't lose your family background. At the very least, when you return to your hometown, you still have enough influence because you are a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations), and your family's land can be exempted from taxes.

But if you're like Wang Guoguang, then you'll have nothing left.

Zeng Shengwu dared not hope that Wei Guangde would plead with the emperor to show leniency and rescind the decision to dismiss him from office, but he still hoped that Wei Guangde could intercede on his behalf and allow Wang Guoguang to retire with his official position.

"I know about the three provinces, but now is not the time."

Wei Guangde whispered to him, "Why?"

Zeng Shengwu asked blankly.

"There are many mysteries in this matter, and it cannot be explained in a short time."

You and they are ultimately not on the same path; many inside stories are actually unknown to you.

Wei Guangde did not explicitly state that although Zeng Shengwu had a close relationship with Zhang Juzheng, his special circumstances meant that he ultimately did not gain Zhang Juzheng's complete trust.

It was precisely for this reason that neither Wang Guoguang, Zhang Siwei, nor Feng Bao, nor Wang Zhuan had any intention of winning over this high-ranking official, the Minister of Justice, who was of the second rank.

Therefore, Zeng Shengwu was unaware of the inside story.

Although he was happy to see Feng Bao fall from power, he did not want to see Wang Guoguang sacrificed by Wei Guangde, especially since it was so tragic.

"Is it so difficult for you to plead with His Majesty?"

Is it because he was on the same side as Chief Minister Zhang that you treat him this way?

Shan Dai, now that you are the Grand Secretary of the Ming Dynasty, you should take on the responsibility of protecting the interests of civil officials.

Even if Wang Guoguang treated you coldly in the past, you should put aside past grievances and help him now.

This is good for him and for you.

Zeng Shengwu continued.

"As for the three provinces, I can only tell you now that it's impossible to do it in the near future."

However, I will find an opportunity to speak with His Majesty about this next year.

After hesitating for a moment, Wei Guangde finally spoke.

However, he overestimated Zeng Shengwu's patience and remained unmoved, asking Wei Guangde, "Why wait until next year? Why not now?"

"Sansheng, how can I possibly explain this to you?"

Wei Guangde hesitated for a moment, then finally lowered his voice and said, "Do you still remember His Majesty's permission for Pan Sheng to retire? Think about it carefully. Actually, some people in the court have already commented on it, but I guess you didn't take it seriously, which is why you're pressing me for an answer."

"You mean"

Zeng Shengwu seemed to just wake up from a dream, and hesitantly pointed to the roof.

"Yes, it would be useless to talk to His Majesty at this time; it might even cause more trouble."

Letting him leave is for his own good, so that His Majesty won't take his anger out on him if something else happens in the future.

As for why it's next year, you know about the major events that are about to happen in the imperial court.

If successful, His Majesty will be overjoyed and will surely reward those who have contributed greatly, bestowing generous gifts upon the entire realm. We can then use this opportunity to speak on his behalf and restore his former status.

Wei Guangde settled Zeng Shengwu in his residence, while Zhang Siwei held a grand banquet for his guests.

Yes, having eliminated two opponents in one fell swoop, Zhang Siwei naturally felt a surge of pride, believing he had already seized power.

At first, he was afraid of Feng Bao, after all, he was the prime minister. However, he did not expect that a seemingly insignificant move would have such a huge effect. It not only connected him with a favored close minister of the emperor, but also directly brought down Feng Bao, a major enemy, in one fell swoop.

Now, he only has Wei Guangde above him.

Zhang Siwei naturally had to treat this opponent with caution.

Ordinary reasons, such as impeaching him for corruption, are frankly hard to believe.

Wei Guangde never concealed the wealth of the Wei family.

Even though Zhang Juzheng advised him to keep a low profile in business, Wei Guangde ignored him.

Wei Guangde's business acumen surpassed his ability to govern the country, a consensus shared by most officials in the court.

Wei Guangde's businesses were very profitable, and he made a lot of money with a group of people.

This group included not only nobles but also court officials.

The closer it got to the end of the year, the higher the officials' expectations became for the boat permits that had been initially allocated to the Six Ministries and Five Temples.

Last year, the dividends from the Chamber of Commerce, based on the value of the ships, made a fortune for the officials in Beijing, allowing them to have a very prosperous New Year, even exceeding the rewards issued by the palace.

Everyone attributed the credit to Wei Guangde, rather than to Zhang Juzheng, who proposed increasing the number of ports for foreign trade.

The first person to allocate boat licenses in this way was Wei Guangde, who used the opening of the sea in Songjiang Prefecture as a license, which essentially tied the entire imperial court to the boat of opening the sea.

In official circles today, no one dares to mention the ancestral rule of "banning the sea," for that would be to offend all officials in the capital.

Whether everyone has a good New Year depends entirely on those businessmen.

This would have been impossible in the past. Any benefits would have been distributed privately by a few high-ranking officials. There would never have been such a universally beneficial approach, directly benefiting all officials in Beijing.

It's difficult to convict someone like this of corruption and bribery.

Therefore, after much thought, Zhang Siwei concluded that the only solution was to wait patiently for Wei Guangde to make a mistake.

Then take advantage of his mistake to deliver a fatal blow.

In the flower hall, the three large tables were packed with people. Zhang Siwei was very happy to see that his subordinates were strong and well-equipped, and he temporarily put aside his covetousness for the position of Grand Secretary.

Meanwhile, at the Feng residence, Liu Shouyou had just dealt with Zhang Jing and watched as the young eunuch left carrying a full box of jewels, feeling a surge of disdain.

"A eunuch is a eunuch; he only likes pornography and these kinds of things."

Entering a former study, Liu Shouyou watched as two of his trusted confidants were working on an abacus.

"Sir, the approximate figures from Xu Jue's side are in, there are..."

One of the confidants looked up at Liu Shouyou as he entered and said something.

"Keep Xu Jue's wealth, including gold, silver, treasures, calligraphy, paintings, and antiques, but give me half of his land and shops."

Before his confidant could finish speaking, Liu Shouyou said, "Rewrite the list and give it to me for review. Make sure all the names that need to be reviewed are properly listed."

The same applies to everyone else; only fill in half of the Tiandi Shop information, leave the rest untouched.

"Yes, sir, what about that stack of deeds here?"

The confidant was referring to the land and shops under Feng Bao's name.

Feng Bao actually owned two estates outside the city, which Liu Shouyou hadn't expected. In addition, he also owned an estate in his hometown.

As for the shops, there are as many as seven or eight in the city, all of which were given to them by others.

Feng Bao only received dividends but never transferred ownership or changed the deed, so the assets were not listed in the register.

"The fields remain, but the shops stay."

Liu Shouyou gave the instructions. (End of Chapter)