prosperous age

While Wei Guangde and Chen Ju were discussing Zhang Jing, the person they were talking about was also pacing around in his room like an ant on a hot pan.

Although he emerged unscathed from the Directorate of Ceremonial, he knew that his relationship with his godfather, Zhang Hong, was now severed.

Yes, Zhang Hong has expelled him from the school and no longer pays attention to him.

Without Zhang Hong's protection, he didn't have a high position in the inner court. He was embarrassed when facing several senior eunuchs and could only bow and scrape.

Changing allegiance within the inner court is more troublesome than in the outer court. Don't underestimate eunuchs; their views on this matter are even more extreme than those of civil officials in the outer court.

After all, it's inevitable that someone who has already lost a piece of flesh will have extreme views.

However, the so-called loyal eunuchs are merely those who can control the evil thoughts in their hearts and act justly and fairly, while the vast majority of people have twisted minds because of their physical defects.

He thought about all the high-ranking eunuchs in the inner court. Those ranked lower couldn't protect him; the ones who could truly protect him were the top-ranking ones.

Chen Ju was actually lacking in experience. If it weren't for inheriting Gao Zhong's connections and having the Grand Secretary Wei Guangde as an external ally, his position in the inner court would have been quite awkward.

Yes, Chen Ju was considered young in the inner court; he was only in his forties and already held a high position.

At this age, the highest ranking one would normally be would be lower, and it would be absolutely impossible for one to have climbed to their current position.

He and Wei Guangde are quite similar in some ways.

As for Zhang Cheng, he has the ability to protect himself, but he may not actually offer any help.

This person is also very selfish. He might help himself if he receives a bribe, but he will definitely not help indefinitely.

A man like him was already considered unreliable within the inner court, so how could Zhang Cheng truly bring him under his command?

"Godfather."

Just as Zhang Jing was feeling restless, a young eunuch outside the door called out softly.

"come in."

This man is Zhang Gui, who is Zhang Jing's godson and one of the few people around him now.

Yes, after that incident, some of his godsons who were originally close to him gradually distanced themselves from him and went to find other godfathers.

People like this are not seen as two-faced or treacherous. Although they are still hard to trust, they are considered representatives of those who have abandoned darkness for light.

Therefore, if Zhang Jing is unlucky, most of these people will not be implicated.

Although Zhang Jingren wasn't much of a talent, he still had a few relatively honest godsons around him, and Zhang Gui was one of them.

Once everyone entered the house, Zhang Jing couldn't wait to ask, "Have we invited Eunuch Zhang yet?"

Upon seeing that it was Zhang Gui who had returned, he naturally began to inquire immediately.

He sent the man out, so of course he knew what task he had assigned him.

“My son met with Grandpa Zhang, but Grandpa Zhang said he’s busy these days and we can meet again when he has more free time.”

Zhang Gui lowered his voice and whispered.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Jing knew that this was Zhang Cheng's polite refusal, clearly indicating that he did not believe that their collusion would be of any use.

The key is that Zhang Cheng isn't stupid. Those below might not be able to see clearly who's actually behind Zhang Jing, but Zhang Cheng definitely isn't.

If we could win over Zhang Jing, and if Zhang Siwei were still in the court as the second-in-command, we might still have a chance.

But now, Zhang Siwei is already in mourning for his parents back home, yet he still wants to "strategize and win battles from afar." This is a gross underestimation of the officials in the court.

Even if the Jin Party is still very powerful, the Gan Party will absolutely not give them any chance.

Winning over Zhang Jing would be tantamount to slapping Zhang Hong in the face, and might also offend the current Grand Secretary, potentially leading to Chen Ju's hostility.

This is easy to calculate; it's definitely a loss.

If Zhang Cheng wants to replace Zhang Hong, he cannot afford to break ties with Wei Guangde, because only through cooperation between the inside and outside can the stability of the court be maintained, and only then will the Emperor be pleased.

With everything peaceful and undisturbed, the Emperor has no need to worry about state affairs.

Aside from Emperor Chongzhen, several emperors after the Ming Dynasty were like Zhu Yuanzhang, sleeping later than dogs and waking up earlier than chickens.

Everyone hopes for peace and tranquility in the world and doesn't want to let national affairs distract them.

For the usual trivial matters, the cabinet can handle them, and the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs can supervise them.

Emperor Wanli was ambitious, or at least he once was.

But what did I see after reviewing memorials for more than a year?
What really bothered him were the things Wei Guangde had done.

When he fought in Myanmar earlier, he did not rule personally; he was a puppet who authorized the cabinet to take the lead.

He's been paying attention to the recent turmoil in Mongolia.

The expedition against Japan was beneficial to consolidating his imperial power; at the very least, a victory would demonstrate his military prowess, so he paid close attention to it.

That's all for these two matters. As for the luxury mirror project, he didn't care at all; he just authorized it after hearing the cabinet's report.

The emperor learned profound principles from Zhang Juzheng, as well as from those academicians, and he also learned a great deal from Wei Guangde.

At the very least, he knew that Wei Guangde's desire to fill positions in the cabinet was actually the same as the emperor's purpose in establishing the cabinet: to free him, as the chief minister, from the heavy burden of reviewing memorials so that he could focus on other more important matters.

The Wanli Emperor learned this lesson: he delegated unimportant matters to the Grand Secretariat and the Directorate of Ceremonial, while also focusing on more important issues.

Of course, Emperor Wanli also saw that Wei Guangde did not monopolize power, did not value power too much, and was willing to delegate the power to handle many memorials to other cabinet ministers.

This is exactly what the emperor likes most; no one would want the chief minister to be someone with a strong desire for power who wants to control everything.

In fact, Zhang Juzheng was just that kind of person.

Emperor Wanli had long ago instructed Liu Shouyou to gather information about the Zhang family's past. Although Zhang Juzheng was indeed living a life of extravagance and debauchery, it was still a level below that of the nobility.

What truly moved him was that, apart from those few days of indulgence each month, Master Zhang was always conscientious in his duties, often reading memorials until very late.

Although this was somewhat against the rules—cabinet affairs were not supposed to be handled at home—Zhang Juzheng still did it.

He would read all the memorials that the cabinet dealt with, except those he handled personally.

Yes, Zhang Juzheng would review all of them, but he wouldn't touch the draft proposals submitted by the other cabinet ministers.

When promoting the land survey and the integration of land tax and poll tax, officials from various departments were often summoned to discuss the matter late into the night, and they would not rest until very late.

Although he had shown sufficient loyalty to the imperial power, Emperor Wanli still harbored resentment towards Zhang Juzheng whenever he thought of those rumors.

This was actually the main reason why Emperor Wanli wanted to punish Zhang Juzheng; rumors that insulted his mother would not be easily forgotten.

In later films and television dramas, Zhang Juzheng is often portrayed as a romantic and dashing figure. However, in this era, this would have been a serious crime punishable by confiscation of property and extermination of the entire family.

It can only be said that Gao Gong was truly ruthless, relentlessly persecuting Zhang Juzheng's family.

In other words, Wei Guangde was not in the capital when the struggle was at its fiercest. If he had been involved, they might have fabricated a story about Wei Guangde and Empress Dowager Chen that they had to tell.

In general, Zhang Jing was well aware that Wei Guangde held a very high position in the Wanli Emperor's heart, and his position was somewhat unshakeable.

However, the emperor's animosity towards Zhang Juzheng was real and could be manipulated.

They chose to support Zhang Siwei's idea of ​​first stirring up trouble for Zhang Juzheng and then spreading it to Wei Guangde.

Only by transferring the emperor's pent-up resentment towards Zhang Juzheng onto Wei Guangde could there be a chance to successfully overthrow Wei. Zhang Siwei's judgment was accurate, but since he was not in the capital, he relied entirely on Zhang Jing for certain matters, which inevitably led to oversights.

At this moment, Zhang Jing glanced at Zhang Gui, thought for a moment, and then asked, "Is Eunuch Chen on night duty tonight?"

"Eunuch Chen has already left the palace; tonight, it's Eunuch Zhang Cheng's turn to be on night duty."

Zhang Gui replied in a low voice.

"Okay, Xiao Guizi, you can go now."

Zhang Jing waved his hand, telling him to leave.

He sat down with difficulty, knowing that Chen Ju must have gone to Wei Guangde's place; the two were very close.

This morning, if His Majesty hadn't summoned Wei Guangde and issued an imperial decree directly, today's events would have had a different outcome.

Zhang Jing began to think about finding another way to win more favor from the Emperor.

As for eunuchs, everyone knows that they depend on the emperor for everything.

As long as the emperor trusts them, they have nothing to fear.

Why was Liu Jin so arrogant back then? He was not only the most powerful man in the palace, daring to suppress the other "Eight Tigers," but he could also intimidate the court. It was all thanks to the favor of Emperor Zhengde.

"Where can we get something to appease the Emperor?"

Zhang Jing pondered how to curry favor with the emperor.

The Emperor has no shortage of ordinary things.

He has already offered up some good things, so finding some rare and unusual treasures is actually quite a brain teaser.

Perhaps this is why eunuchs who relied on displaying their ingenious skills to please the emperor ultimately met with bad ends.

There are only so many novelties. If you present one today and another tomorrow, once all the good things are given away and there are no more novelties left, the emperor's favor towards him will have come to an end.

Unless he successfully transforms himself before this situation arises, becoming the emperor's right-hand man, helping him handle other affairs, and letting the emperor see his value.

However, these are the paths taken by veteran eunuchs who have climbed the ranks step by step in the palace, paths that no newcomer like Zhang Jing can ever cross.

"Little Guizi, come in."

Suddenly, Zhang Jing remembered something and hurriedly called Zhang Gui back, whom he had just chased away.

"Godfather, what are your orders?"

Zhang Gui entered and immediately asked respectfully.

"When Zhao Lu came over the other day, didn't he say that a foreign monk had come to the capital?"

Zhang Jing asked hesitantly.

He remembered hearing Zhao Lu say this at the time, and he just thought it was a novel thing. The Ming Dynasty had no shortage of monks and Taoists. If it were the previous dynasty, whether it was the Jiajing or Longqing reign, the emperors seemed to be very interested in these alchemists.

The Jiajing Emperor wanted to become an immortal, and the Longqing Emperor wanted to improve his physical functions to regain his virility; both of them consumed a lot of elixirs.

The current Wanli Emperor is in good health and has just assumed power. He has no desire to become an immortal, so he doesn't care much about these monks and Taoists and only handles these matters as routine.

Rewarding temples and Taoist monasteries, including Longhu Mountain, was a must-do for every emperor.

"Uh, Director Zhao did come over to report on this matter a couple of days ago."

Zhang Gui hurriedly said, as if recalling something, "It seems that the foreign monk was named Li something-dou, a monk from an overseas missionary, who came to our Great Ming to spread his doctrines."

"Make a note of this, and have Zhao, the foreman, come see me tomorrow."

Zhang Jing spoke up.

He had already presented all the novel creations of the Ming Dynasty to the Wanli Emperor, so it would be difficult to find anything new in a short period of time.

However, perhaps they could be found among the foreign monks.

Although the missions that visited the West brought back many local artifacts, they mainly collected local books. Although they had many items, they probably didn't cover everything.

Maybe the foreign monk knows something fun.

If I buy it from him and deliver it to the Emperor, I will gain even more favor from him.

In his current situation, being favored by the Emperor means his position is secure. Even if Zhang Hong and his ilk want to make things difficult for him, they will have to think twice about the consequences of angering the Emperor.

Zhang Jing's plan was good, but the result might disappoint him.

Although Matteo Ricci was very knowledgeable, he was not the kind of craftsman who knew all sorts of strange skills.

Of course, even if you've never slaughtered a pig, you've still eaten pork, so you know how to make some simple things.

In reality, after Matteo Ricci arrived in China, he supported his missionary work by manufacturing and selling novelties that were quite novel to the Ming Dynasty at the time. Even though he had many students, he also recruited some of the earliest Catholics in China.

His main products included eyeglasses, binoculars, and magnifying glasses, which he sold to wealthy people.

At present, the Ming court has mastered the technology to manufacture telescopes. However, because they are military and national weapons, they are not widely publicized. Only high-ranking officials and nobles in the court have the opportunity to come into contact with them, or they are directly distributed to the generals in charge of various garrisons.

In fact, to maintain secrecy, even the Ministry of Works was not informed of the manufacturing technology. Instead, it was kept secret within the Silver Workshop, where craftsmen polished the lenses and manufactured the lens barrels.

That night, officials in the capital chatted about the relationship between Zhang Jing and Zhang Siwei in restaurants and teahouses, drinking and laughing heartily.

What seems like a daytime event has simply provided some amusement and fodder for conversation.

The next day, in the main hall of the Eastern Depot, Zhang Gui had someone summon Zhao, the head of the guards, and told him to wait outside for Zhang Jing to arrive.

After the others arrived, Zhang Jing asked about the foreign monk.

"That man was Matteo Ricci. He landed in Songjiang Prefecture and stayed there for two years, always wanting to preach in our Great Ming Dynasty."

He only recently received permission, and he's already come all the way from Songjiang Prefecture to the capital.

As Zhao, the head of the gang, was still enthusiastically recounting what he knew, Zhang Jing impatiently interrupted, "Is he really a foreign monk?"

"Yes, definitely. I've seen him wearing a monk's robe, but later he changed into a Confucian scholar's robe. Everyone I meet says he's a Western Confucian scholar, well-versed in Western learning."

He even adopted a courtesy name like ours, Xitai, and referred to himself as Matteo Ricci Xitai.

Zhao, the head of the team, hurriedly said.

Where does he live now?

Zhang Jing didn't care what the foreign monk's name was; he only cared where the man lived, wanted to meet him, and see if he could get his hands on any Western gadgets.

In the inner palace, in the Qianqing Palace, Kunning Palace, Ciqing Palace, and Cining Palace, there were quite a few foreign gadgets that the mission had brought back, such as clocks and full-length mirrors. The noble ladies in the palace did not reject those things and even liked them very much.

"The Xu family's courtyard in Chongbei Ward of the outer city belongs to a merchant from Songjiang Prefecture in the capital. It is said that they have some connection with the residence of Grand Secretary Wei."

Zhao, the head of the team, hurriedly said.

The imperial guards had strict control over the capital, so people like Matteo Ricci, who were obviously foreigners, naturally attracted their attention.

"Take me to see him."

Zhang Jing immediately replied. (End of Chapter)