prosperous age

"Your Majesty, some of my uncle's previous policies offended many people. These rumors and slanders are nothing more than throwing mud at a dead man."

Inside the Qianqing Palace, Wei Guangde held several memorials in his hands and spoke softly to the Wanli Emperor.

Today, Wei Guangde was suddenly summoned here from the cabinet, and the Wanli Emperor took out several memorials and handed them to him.

Although Wei Guangde noticed Emperor Wanli's angry expression when he entered the palace and knew something had happened, he didn't expect it to be about Zhang Juzheng.

Even though he's been dead for half a year, people are still relentlessly smearing him, claiming that Zhang Juzheng not only accepted bribes extensively during his tenure but also embezzled the property of the imperial family, with half of the Liao Prince's estate going to the Zhang family.

Wei Guangde was not deeply involved in the matter of dealing with the Prince of Liao and was not very clear about the inside story.

It seems possible that Zhang Juzheng retaliated against the Prince of Liao, since he did indeed suffer quite a bit, but some things were also accomplished by chance.

As for the claim that Zhang Juzheng was able to embezzle the Liao Prince's property, Wei Guangde didn't quite believe it.

Even if someone were to make a move, it could only be Feng Bao.

After all, the imperial clan members were actually watched over by people in the inner court. Including the imperial clan members' property, it was ultimately received by the inner court. Local government offices would seize the property, the Embroidered Uniform Guard would confiscate it, and then it would be transferred to the inner court. At which stage could Zhang Juzheng embezzle property?
"Does Master Wei mean that Master Zhang did not embezzle any property belonging to the imperial family?"

Emperor Wanli's expression softened slightly at this point; he had been furious when he saw the memorial.

They seized the property of the imperial family and oppressed them. These actions were a slap in the face to the emperor, and he could not accept them.

Even though there is a layer separating the royal family and the imperial family, they are still relatives, and he cannot ignore it.

"Your Majesty, I am not certain."

Wei Guangde didn't want to take the blame, and he didn't know how to agree to it.

"However, since a memorial has been submitted to Your Majesty, Your Majesty may wish to send the Censorate to verify it, including the person who submitted the memorial."

Wei Guangde spoke up.

Actually, what he wanted to know more about at that moment was how the memorial had arrived at the Qianqing Palace.

The cabinet has no record of this memorial, nor is there any draft proposal on it.

This means that the ministers delivered the secret memorial directly to the palace gates, but such a memorial should have been communicated to the Grand Secretariat by the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs first.

Wei Guangde knew Zhang Hong fairly well; he wasn't that kind of person.

Unless, someone in the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs secretly delivered the memorials directly to the Wanli Emperor.

Moreover, it is clear that this memorial was not an individual act, but a collective act, with several people submitting separate memorials impeaching Zhang Juzheng for a series of crimes.

These people are so audacious today that they can impeach a deceased prime minister; who knows, one day they might turn the gun on themselves.

He was still able to speak out against those who impeached Zhang Juzheng.

If it's a direct attack on oneself, then this explanation isn't acceptable, but not explaining it isn't acceptable either.

At this moment, Wei Guangde had already noted down the names of Yang Sizhi, Li Zhi, and others who wrote the memorial. Even if the Censorate couldn't find anything this time, he wouldn't let them get away with it.

They must be dealt with discreetly and sent to some remote, desolate place. This kind of troublemaker cannot be kept in the capital.

"Master Wei, what do you think? Should we directly order the Censorate to investigate this matter, or..."

Emperor Wanli's anger had subsided considerably by now, and he realized that if the matter were investigated in a grand manner, it would have an impact on the court and on him, not just on Zhang Juzheng.

Wei Guangde was actually quite puzzled by the Wanli Emperor's behavior today. He didn't know why the Wanli Emperor was so angry about these few memorials. Shouldn't he have verified them first? Instead, he got angry directly and even summoned him to ask how to deal with them.

In fact, ever since Emperor Wanli read "Last Words from His Sickbed," he had developed a strong dislike for Zhang Juzheng because of what the book said, especially the veiled mention of the ambiguous relationship between Zhang Juzheng and Empress Dowager Li.

However, since it concerned his mother, Emperor Wanli couldn't very well ask others about this matter or discuss its veracity.

He could only keep this to himself, but he could not hide his anger and embarrassment towards Zhang Juzheng.

Upon seeing the memorial today, Emperor Wanli was immediately enraged. He didn't consider the veracity of these accusations at all; he just wanted to use them as an excuse, especially the charge of embezzling the property of the imperial family, which was exactly what he wanted.

Zhang Juzheng should be dealt with severely, stripped of everything.

Don't civil officials value these empty titles the most? Then tear them off, leaving no trace of dignity.

However, Wei Guangde's calm and unhurried manner of speaking helped him calm down a bit.

If Zhang Juzheng were to be punished for this, it would actually have a negative impact on both the court and the emperor.

"Your Majesty, I will inform the Censorate of this matter and have them investigate it secretly."

Wei Guangde said, "Your Majesty will consider the matter after the verification results are available."

If Zhang Shuda really committed illegal or disorderly acts, even if he is no longer alive, the imperial court will still punish him accordingly.

However, if it is a frame-up by someone with malicious intent, it should be dealt with seriously.

"Hmm, Master Wei, you just said that many people are dissatisfied with Master Zhang. Tell me in detail."

Wei Guangde didn't understand why the Wanli Emperor was like this. Although he could sense that the emperor was dissatisfied with Zhang Juzheng, he never expected him to be so angry.

Now, when asked about those who opposed Zhang Juzheng, Wei Guangde hesitated for a moment before beginning to speak.

After all, the emperor might have realized that he was simply unsure and hoped to get confirmation from Wei Guangde.

Local gentry believed that the land survey and the re-compilation of the Yellow Registers were a sign of Zhang Juzheng's dissatisfaction, which led to them being burdened with heavier taxes and corvée labor.

Originally, according to the original fish-scale register and yellow register, and through collusion with local officials, most of the taxes and corvée labor had been successfully transferred to the people, who only needed to bear a small amount of taxes and corvée labor.

However, Zhang Juzheng's land survey not only exposed the land they had concealed, but also meant that after the tax reform was applied to the land and taxes were collected directly from them, they not only had to bear the taxes they were supposed to bear, but also had to pay the corvée taxes for those landless people.

In Zhang Juzheng's words, "Who told you to take away other people's land? Without land to grow and raise children, how can we create wealth and pay national taxes?"

In fact, in Zhang Juzheng's view, national taxes came from the people, and the people's wealth came from the land. To put it bluntly, "where there is land, there is wealth."

Given this, it is perfectly reasonable for landowners to bear the burden of taxes and corvée labor.

Zhang Juzheng not only made this statement extensively in the imperial court, but also used it to defend himself and refute those who opposed the land survey and the integration of land tax and poll tax at gatherings of scholars.

Although everyone knows that industry and commerce can create wealth, in a feudal society where agriculture was the foundation, this was not a respectable statement, and saying it would only be seen as being tainted by money.

Besides the impact of the reforms on the gentry class, Zhang Juzheng's closure of academies across the country also caused quite a stir among scholars, especially the strong backlash from followers of the School of Mind.

The conflict between Neo-Confucianism and the School of Mind was fierce among the common people. Zhang Juzheng's closure of academies was actually a suppression of the spread of the School of Mind, which naturally made him hated by the followers of the School of Mind.

In fact, the cabinet had received requests from local authorities to reopen the academies, but Wei Guangde suppressed them for the time being.

The academy must remain open.

What we have now can only be considered schools, teaching most people to read and write, but they do not generate any intellectual exchange or spark any ideas that drive social development.

In the college, however, the headmaster and professors encouraged students to debate, and they even set an example by personally participating.

Of course, this was one of the important reasons why Zhang Juzheng wanted to close the academy. Although Wei Guangde sometimes felt that they were being nosy, he felt it was not good to actually close it.

In fact, Wei Guangde opposed this at the time, but Zhang Juzheng's attitude was firm, so he could only acquiesce. Now that he is in power, the policies of Zhang Juzheng's era will definitely need to be adjusted. However, unlike Gao Gong and Zhang Juzheng, he will not completely negate the policies left by his predecessors from the outset, but will make adjustments gradually.

However, there is no gradual process for opening or closing academies, so he plans to hold off for two years before quietly opening the White Deer Cave Academy.

The imperial court will not issue an official decree allowing the reopening of academies, but it will not prohibit them from doing so either.

Taking this opportunity, Wei Guangde also shared his thoughts.

"Master Wei, I understand what you mean. The land reform will continue and there won't be any major changes."

Other policies will be gradually adjusted. For example, the academies that were closed will be reopened later, right?

Emperor Wanli listened quietly as Wei Guangde finished his story before speaking.

"No one is more wise than the emperor; that is exactly what I mean."

Wei Guangde bowed and said.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Wei Guangde resigned, citing his busy schedule with cabinet affairs.

After Emperor Wanli nodded slightly, just as Wei Guangde was about to leave, he was suddenly called back: "Master Wei, back when Yu Zhi was young, I didn't remember much. Back then, Master Wei and Master Zhang often went to the Prince's Mansion. Did they often go to the backyard to see Father?"

"Ok?"

Wei Guangde stopped and turned to look at the throne.

“Your Majesty, back in Yuzhi, the back garden of the Prince’s Palace was guarded by eunuchs, and we could not enter at will unless we were accompanied by Eunuch Lü.”

Wei Guangde spoke up.

That's absolutely true. Either the Longqing Emperor summoned them, and an eunuch led them into the backyard, or they went into the backyard with Lü Fang to find Prince Yu. What were they thinking if they went in alone?

As for those in the back courtyard who want to come out alone, that's out of the question; it's a matter of the Prince's mansion's reputation.

Of course, there were two people who could come and go freely: Prince Yu and Emperor Wanli. At that time, he could run around freely in the front and back courtyards. Anyway, Feng Bao and his eunuchs followed behind him. They would also often go to the small courtyard where Wei Guangde and the others lived, which was where Prince Yu studied, to play.

"Hmm, I vaguely remember there was a small courtyard back then."

Emperor Wanli seemed to be questioning his childhood experiences, speaking casually. Wei Guangde, of course, didn't take it seriously, assuming it was because of Zhang Juzheng's affair that the young emperor remembered when Zhang Juzheng took him to play in the front yard and even took him out of the palace to stroll around.

Well, Feng Bao wasn't qualified to take the heir apparent out, but Wei Guangde and Zhang Juzheng were. As long as they said they would take the heir apparent out, the Longqing Emperor never refused.

After all, when Zhu Yijun was very young, the Longqing Emperor had already chosen Zhang Juzheng and Wei Guangde to teach him.

After chatting for a while, Wei Guangde finally left the Qianqing Palace.

He wasn't really interested in reminiscing about the past with Emperor Wanli; he was actually thinking about finding out how the memorial had reached the emperor without going through the cabinet.

Even if it was a secret report, why didn't Zhang Hong give him a heads-up beforehand and catch him off guard?

Unbeknownst to Wei Guangde, as he left Qianqing Palace, a pair of sinister eyes were fixed on him.

Although Emperor Wanli dismissed the surrounding eunuchs when discussing this matter with Wei Guangde, this person was still able to stand guard outside and vaguely hear a lot of the conversation inside.

"Eunuch Zhang, His Majesty invites you in."

Just then, a eunuch came up to him and whispered something.

"Oh, I see."

Zhang Jing walked towards the palace gate with a blank expression.

Wei Guangde walked slowly along the palace road for a while, then stood aside to rest as if he were tired.

A moment later, a eunuch hurried over.

"Lord Wei, what brings you here?"

The visitor was Liu Ruoyu, a eunuch from the Qianqing Palace. Wei Guangde had secretly gestured to him when he left the palace, asking him to come out.

"Ruoyu, I ask you, did Eunuch Zhang Hong enter the Qianqing Palace today?"

Wei Guangde asked.

"He hasn't come today yet. He usually comes around lunchtime to deliver the memorials that the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs processed this morning."

Liu Ruoyu immediately said.

"I just had an audience with His Majesty, and he showed me several memorials. Who do you think brought them into the palace?"

Wei Guangde then recounted the contents of the memorials submitted by Yang Sizhi, Li Zhi, and others to Liu Ruoyu.

Even if he doesn't tell him now, he will find out later. After all, Liu Ruoyu has a high status in the Qianqing Palace and often helps Emperor Wanli organize his writing desk and compile memorials.

Even those memorials left behind were registered and stored by Liu Ruoyu.

Those few memorials that were destined to remain in the capital would eventually fall into his hands and then be passed on to Chen Ju.

As for when to put it away, that depends on whether Emperor Wanli still has any intention of harming Zhang Juzheng.

If he had such a person, he would naturally hold onto it, find a way to release it, and get more people to stand up and impeach him, impeach a dead man, and then he would go with the flow.

However, Wei Guangde did not want this to happen; Zhang Juzheng should not be treated this way.

Although his policies have some flaws, they are generally beneficial to the country.

No one in later generations would question the claim that Zhang Juzheng extended the life of the Ming Dynasty, but it was the Wanli Emperor himself who ruined it.

Perhaps, at first he only wanted to overthrow Zhang Juzheng and take back all his rewards, without intending to negate his reforms.

However, in the end, when everyone pushes a wall down, even the emperor sometimes can't stop himself.

Wei Guangde did not want this to happen, as it would have a huge negative impact on his rule, completely ruining the new order that had already been established, and would be a losing proposition.

It must be said that neither Zhang Siwei nor Shen Shixing were able to properly fulfill their responsibilities as Grand Secretary of the Ming Dynasty after Zhang Juzheng's death, thus allowing the situation to worsen.

“Lord Wei, based on what you said, I guess this memorial was brought into the palace by Zhang Jing.”

After hearing Wei Guangde's words, Liu Ruoyu said in a low voice.

"Zhang Jing, what's the point of him doing all this at this time?"

Wei Guangde was somewhat puzzled. The political situation had already changed, so what benefit would he gain from continuing to attack Zhang Juzheng at this time?
Wei Guangde couldn't understand it at all.

"Perhaps he wants to make those reforms in order to target you."

Liu Ruoyu was very clever and would later become a high-ranking eunuch in the palace, so he astutely pointed out that Xiang Zhuang's sword dance was aimed at Liu Bang.

"Hehe, I understand."

Wei Guangde nodded. He understood. Zhang Siwei and Zhang Jing were likely still in contact, and this whole affair might be orchestrated by Zhang Siwei. (End of Chapter)