Daming talker

Chapter 758: Noble Conferment

As it was getting late, Lin Tailai prepared to end the party.

But Eunuch Chen showed no intention of leaving. He suddenly asked, "How can a small country like Japan have so much silver? Can it pay three million taels?"

I don't mean anything else, I'm just curious and want to learn more about world geography.

Lin Tailai replied: "Although Japan is small in territory, poor in people, and not rich in products, its gold and silver mines are extremely rich.

For example, the largest silver mine in Japan is called Iwami Silver Mine, which is said to produce one million taels of silver per year.

Eunuch Chen held a high position in the Imperial Palace and was well-informed, but when he heard the introduction of "a silver mine with an annual output of one million taels", his eyes widened in surprise.

No wonder it is called Silver Mountain instead of Silver Mine! Isn’t it just a mountain of silver?
"Where is this silver mountain?" Eunuch Chen asked with great curiosity. He had no other intention, just wanted to know if the silver mountain was far from Ming Dynasty.

Lin Tailai answered in detail: "Iwami Silver Mine is across the sea from Korea. Among all the regions in Japan, this place is relatively close to Ming.

In fact, the Ming army is closer to the silver mine, and it only takes a few days of marching to reach Iwami Silver Mine."

Holy shit! Eunuch Chen was shocked and said, "There are Ming Dynasty troops around Iwami Silver Mine?"

Lin Tailai smiled and said, "Do you remember, Da-eun, that a few months ago, the Ming Dynasty conferred an imperial title on a Japanese lord named Konishi Yukinaga?

This person's territories included four places: Chikuzen, Chikugo, Hizen, and Higo. Among them, Chikuzen was located at the throat between Kyushu and Honshu in Japan.

The 8,000 Ming troops responsible for protecting Konishi Yukinaga are stationed in Chikuzen. From Chikuzen, it will take only a few days to reach Iwami Ginzan.

Eunuch Chen was speechless for a long time. You, Lin Tianshuai, made this deployment on purpose, right? It was definitely premeditated, right?

Lin Tailai added: "Japan not only has silver mountains, but also rich gold mountains, but the largest Sado Gold Mine is a bit far away.

However, there is also a very considerable gold mountain in the Shimazu family's territory on Kyushu Island, which is very close to Konishi Yukinaga who was canonized by our Ming Dynasty.

If we start from Konishi Yukinaga's territory, we can reach Gold Mountain in a few days!"

Eunuch Chen replied subconsciously: "So, eight thousand soldiers are a little too few?"

Lin Tailai explained: "Anyway, half of the output of Iwami Silver Mine in the past few years has to be compensated to the Ming Dynasty, so there is no need to be too anxious.

The ruling Toyotomi Hideyoshi of Japan is old and frail, and he will not live for many more years. After his death, Japan will be in civil strife, and that will be the best opportunity to take advantage of the situation and achieve twice the result with half the effort."

Eunuch Chen was deeply impressed. "When I first read the book, I didn't know what the meaning of "The Unparalleled Scholar" was. Today, I finally understood after meeting Lin Jiuyuan."

Lin Tailai: "."

Eunuch Chen, you'd better give a positive evaluation instead of making hidden comments.

The next day, Lin Tailai continued his journey from Tongzhou and arrived at the reception pavilion outside Dongbianmen half a day later.

The official welcome from the court was here. As for eunuch Chen from yesterday, he was the emperor's personal envoy.

The welcoming team was led by the Minister of War Ye Mengxiong himself, and there were also officials from the Ministry of Rites, the Ministry of Revenue, and the Imperial Household Department. The court gave enough face to Lin Jinglüe who had returned victoriously.

Ye Da Sima presented a poem of praise: "It is said that the general came to the border, holding the axe and ascending the altar, the murderous spirit disappeared. Tens of thousands of captives surrendered and returned to the remote area, and the three armies celebrated the victory of the Central Court."

Lin Jinglue replied with a poem: "The emperor has ordered me to attack Fusang in the east. The victory is the result of many temple calculations, and the killing is the result of the power of heaven.

"I have always been loyal and righteous, and my army is so magnificent. I always follow the long-term strategy, and never let the waves rise."

The whole text is mediocre and has nothing outstanding about it, which is completely different from the flamboyant and exaggerated style of the poems written in North Korea.

After all, Lin Tianshuai of the Ming Dynasty has become the court official Lin Tailai, and he cannot act recklessly under the emperor's feet like he did in the Kingdom of Korea.

The poem begins with "Son of Heaven" and ends with "loyalty and righteousness". The court officials all expressed their feelings, and even Lin Tailai knew to keep a low profile, which shows that this achievement was so great.

After the superficial formalities, Lin Tailai and the Minister of War Ye Mengxiong rode side by side, talking as they walked.

As for outsiders, they were separated by the entourage, making it convenient for the two to say things that were not convenient to be spread outside.

"Has there been any major events in Beijing recently?" Lin Tailai asked habitually.

Ye Mengxiong replied: "Jiuyuan Jun, you are not in the capital, what big thing can happen?"

Lin Tailai felt that he was being implicated, but he had no evidence.

Then Ye Mengxiong said, "Jiuyuan Jun, it is probably inevitable that you will be granted a title when you return to the court this time."

If Lin Tailai had followed the rules with his academic achievements and qualifications, his future would have been very bright. He would have become a minister, a chancellor, or entered the cabinet. Whether he could become the prime minister depended on his fate.

Unfortunately, Lin Tailai's great military achievements have become an uncertainty in his future. There are not many conventions to follow and no clear system for civil officials to follow after being awarded titles for their military merits.

For example, the title of nobility is within the system of military honors. After a civil official is conferred a title, the definition of whether he is considered a civil official or a military honor is vague.

Lin Tailai replied: "There is no hard and fast rule in the Ming Dynasty that civil officials cannot continue to be civil officials after being conferred a title, right?"

Ye Mengxiong said: "But it is still too high-profile after all. Besides, the result of not having any rules and regulations is that what to do depends entirely on what everyone says.

There will always be dissatisfied villains in this world who keep making criticisms.

They will definitely say that being conferred a title means you have military merit and you should not continue to be a civil servant; or that being conferred a title means you should avoid suspicion and should not be in the central government any more.”

Anyone who has served as a court official knows that according to the court’s general principles, when encountering matters that are difficult to decide, priority should be given to following precedents.

There are only three precedents of civil officials in the Ming Dynasty being awarded titles based on their military merits. These precedents were too accidental and not very meaningful for reference.

After Wang Yangming put down the Ning Wang Rebellion, he was granted the title of Xinjian Earl and eventually served as Nanjing Minister of War and Nanjing Left Censor-in-Chief.

Earlier in the Chenghua Dynasty, Wang Yue was named the Earl of Weining, and his official position was mostly as the governor of a border town. Then there was Wang Ji, who was even earlier.

There is another example of a civil official being granted a title, that is Xu Youzhen, a fellow countyman of Lin Tailai, but it was not because of his military merits.

At that time, Xu Youzhen was conferred the title of Marquis of Wugong and was promoted to the position of Prime Minister among the civil officials.

Logically speaking, Xu Youzhen's precedent of "a civil official being granted a title and being able to enter the cabinet" may be the most suitable example for Lin Tailai to cite today, but Xu Youzhen's reputation is too bad.

Xu Youzhen's title of Marquis of Wugong was earned by currying favor with Emperor Yingzong's restoration, and he also participated in the false accusation of killing Yu Qian, a great hero in saving the country. This was likened to "Qin Hui's false accusation of killing Yue Fei". It is absolutely impossible to use his fellow villager Xu Youzhen as a precedent when beating Lin Tailai to death.

Lin Tailai then sighed to Ye Mengxiong: "My original intention was just to kill the enemy for my country, not to gain wealth and glory through this.

Just as Qi Shaobao said, I have no desire to be a marquis, but I just hope the sea will be peaceful.

If the court insists on conferring a title on me, then I cannot resist and can only accept it for now and then see how things turn out."

After entering Chongwen Gate, Ye Da Sima walked northward. Seeing Lin Tailai still following him, he asked curiously, "You have traveled a long way. Why are you following me today instead of going home to rest?"

Lin Tailai rolled his eyes and said, "Of course I have to go to the Ministry of War first to return the seal and the royal flag! Do you want me to command the army in the capital?"

Minister of War Ye Mengxiong: "."

After arriving at the Ministry of War and handing in the defense flags and completing the formalities, Lin Tailai was no longer "Right Censor-in-Chief, acting as Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of War, and General Manager of Liaodong, Denglai, Korea, and other places to prepare for the Japanese invasion."

Then Lin Tailai took out a thick book and said to Ye Mengxiong: "This is the Eastern Expedition Merit Book, which records the merits of the generals and their recommendations for promotions and rewards!

If I give it to you, the Ministry of War, you can only report it to the Cabinet, so I might as well send it to the Cabinet myself tomorrow."

Ye Da Sima subconsciously said half a sentence: "This needs to be reviewed by the Ministry of War first."

Under normal circumstances, the review and confirmation of generals' merits and the formulation of promotions and rewards are the work scope of the Ministry of War.

Then Ye Da Sima realized that his attitude was wrong, and quickly changed his words and said, "Jiu Yuanjun, do it yourself!"

That night, Lin Tailai returned to the Lin Mansion in Li Ge Lao Hutong to rest and finally had a sound sleep in his own home.

The next day, Lin Tailai did not inspect the various government offices, nor did he receive visitors at home. Instead, he directly entered the imperial city from the right gate of Chang'an, carrying the Eastern Expedition's record of achievements.

Then he walked through several palace gates and came to the cabinet to do business.

What? Ministers of ministries and agencies generally do not go to the cabinet in person to avoid suspicion and criticism?
However, although Lin Tailai lost the assignment of "Right Censor-in-Chief, acting as Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of War, and in charge of Liaodong, Denglai, Korea and other places to prepare for the Japanese invasion at his discretion", he still had another position as a reader in the Hanlin Academy.

The Hanlin Academy and the Cabinet are part of the same system. So what's wrong with a Hanlin going to the Cabinet?

The Grand Secretary of the Cabinet was dignified and honorable, so naturally no one would come to greet Lin Tailai, so Lin Tailai could only kick open the door curtain on his own and swagger into Wenyuan Pavilion.

Why did he kick the door curtain open? Because Lin Tailai was holding a thick record of achievements and couldn't spare a hand to lift the door curtain.

The Zhongshu Sheren who was waiting outside the door complained inwardly that outsiders who came into the cabinet to do business were mostly very cautious, fearing that they would say a wrong word or take a wrong step.

But when Lin Tailai came to the cabinet, he gave off the feeling of a hostile guest.

"Wow, you all are gathered here!" Lin Tailai greeted casually as he looked at the situation in the central hall of Wenyuan Pavilion.

It's just that the usage of this idiom damages the reputation of the top scholar, but it doesn't matter. Even if Lin Tailai writes a typo now, people will think it is a homophone.

At this time, the four cabinet ministers were sitting together, preparing to hold a meeting.

Prime Minister Zhao Zhigao said to Lin Tai: "We are just discussing the follow-up matters of the Eastern Expedition, such as rewards, captive surrender ceremony, etc., as well as the use of the initial indemnity of 600,000 silver taels."

"Speaking of rewards, it seems to be related to me. There are no outsiders here, so I won't be an outsider.

After all, if a man wants to achieve great things in the world, who wouldn't want to give his wife a title and provide good fortune for his children?
Originally, the highest official position I held was the fourth-rank Shaoqing of the Taichang Temple. If I could be promoted to the third-rank Shilang this time, I would be very satisfied.

I think the right vice minister of the Ministry of Rites is quite suitable, and it is also in line with common practice for the right vice minister of the Ministry of Rites to serve as a reader in the Hanlin Academy. "

If it weren't for his great achievements in politics, military and economy, Lin Tailai's proposal would still be quite reasonable.

Sanfu Zhang Wei said in a slightly sarcastic tone: "How can a promotion to the third rank be a reward? It should be promoted to the super rank."

Zhu Geng, the deputy minister, explained: "The emperor has ordered the cabinet to draft your reward first, and the eunuch has conveyed the emperor's will that you should be conferred the title of marquis."

Generally, those who have made great contributions are granted the title of earl. The first few civil officials were all granted the title of earl.

But this time, Lin Tailai was the first to climb the enemy lines four times, killed generals twice, captured enemies alive three times, annihilated 100,000 enemies, and recovered a large amount of silver and copper mines. His contributions were so great that even a count would be stingy.

However, the title of Duke is too important, so it would be most appropriate to confer the title of Marquis.

When Lin Tailai heard what the ministers said, he sighed inwardly. It seemed that he could not avoid the title this time.

I am only 26 years old, how come I have been granted the title of marquis? How can I make further progress in the future?

It can be said that it was undisputed for him to get a title, and even the Qingliu Party members of his rival family had no reason to object, but the excitement would definitely be after he got the title.

Fortunately, Emperor Wanli was not attending court now, otherwise there would have been an argument for half a day just over whether to stand in the East Group of Civil Officials or the West Group of Nobles in the court.

If it really doesn't work out, after being conferred the title, he should return to his hometown to run the business for a few years, avoiding the farce of the country, and then come back to clean up the mess after Emperor Wanli has completely messed up?

The ancients called it nurturing hope, but when the time comes, they will say, “If Tai Lai does not come out, what will happen to the common people?”
With the dredging of the old Wusong River, the opening of the seaport, and the maturity of the Xujiang Industrial Park, Suzhou has reached a critical period in its development, and it really needs to take charge and control it.
When Lin Tailai was daydreaming, he saw four university scholars looking at him.

"Why are you all looking at me?" Lin Tailai said in confusion, "Aren't you going to have a meeting? Don't bother with me, just have your meeting."

The elders: “.”

This is a meeting of the cabinet ministers. Is it appropriate for an outsider like you to stand by? Besides, they are discussing your personal affairs!
Lin Tailai said impatiently: "It's not a confidential matter, isn't it just a discussion on how to confer a title on me?

What else could possibly happen? Can't I just listen and share the emperor's grace as soon as possible? "

The elders thought to themselves, this seems to make sense? Is it true that conferring a title on Lin Tailai is not a secret?
Forget it, forget it. We can’t drive him away. Let’s just hold a meeting and finalize the ban and send Lin Tailai away.

Zhao Zhigao spoke first and said, "According to convention, the title of nobility is usually based on the place where the meritorious service was made. For example, Wang Yangming's title of Xinjian Earl comes from Xinjian County in Nanchang.

This time, Lin Tailai made great contributions in Korea, so his title must have originated from Korea, but it cannot be Joseon Hou, otherwise it would overlap with the Joseon king, so it is best to use the ancient title of Korea."

Lin Tailai interrupted and said, "If you must confer a title on me, can you take back the title of Duke of Lelang that was given to the Sixth Prince of Joseon, give him another title, and then give Lelang to me? I really like the name Lelang."

The ministers really wanted to stand up and beat up Lin Tailai. Do you think the imperial court's reward is a child's play?
Lin Tailai blinked his eyes, patted his pectoralis major and assured: "I will be responsible for the ideological work of Tong Lelang Gong, and ensure that he does not cause trouble and does not cause too much trouble to the court!"

Finally, the Third Cabinet Elder Zhang Wei couldn't stand it anymore and said, "Shut up! This is a cabinet meeting, you have no place to speak!"

(End of this chapter)