I am Emperor Wanli

Chapter 71 Gao Gong's First Arrow

The second day of July, the forty-third year of the Jiajing reign.

Longevity Palace.

Two bronze cranes with graceful bodies stood on both sides of the middle of the hall, with their long necks raised and their long beaks facing the sky, exhaling wisps of sandalwood.

The Jiajing Emperor had lost some weight, and his face looked longer. His cheekbones were high, as if they were cut by a knife. His triangular eyes were still sharp, but a little tired in the turbidity.

Standing next to him was Li Fang, standing below him was Huang Jin, and sitting was Zhu Yijun.

Standing in the hall were cabinet ministers Xu Jie, Gao Gong, Yan Ne, Li Chunfang, as well as the ministers and vice ministers of the Ministry of Rites, Ministry of Revenue, and Ministry of Works, a total of ten people.

It was rare to see so many ministers standing in the Wanshou Palace.

Xu Jie and Gao Gong glanced at Zhu Yijun who was sitting next to the emperor.

The prince had grown taller and looked like a young boy. His demeanor was also more stable. He sat there like a small mountain, his eyes deep like a calm sea.

The chief minister of the cabinet, Xu Jie, stepped forward and spoke slowly.

"On the tenth day of the eighth month, the Emperor's birthday is celebrated throughout the country. Six months ago, we sent a letter to the Ministry of Rites, the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of Works, Shuntian Prefecture, and the Five Cities Military Command, requesting a grand celebration of the Emperor's birthday."

"Your Majesty, please ask the Ministry of Rites, the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of Works, and Shuntian Prefecture to report the specific arrangements to Your Majesty one by one."

"Okay. You guys continue talking." Emperor Jiajing responded calmly.

"Your Majesty, the Ministry of Rites has drafted the following rules for the Wanshou Anniversary Celebration: offering sacrifices to heaven and honoring ancestors, sending ritual officials to the Temple of Heaven and the Imperial Ancestral Temple to worship heaven and the ancestors, praying for blessings. It is proposed to issue a general amnesty, extending favors to all civil and military officials."

After the Ministry of Rites finished speaking, the Ministry of Works came out to speak.

The three main halls were rebuilt, and the Wanshou Palace and other palaces were completed. Finally, on the Wanshou Festival in the 43rd year of Jiajing's reign, a gift was presented to Emperor Jiajing.

The Minister of Works Lei Li spoke in a loud voice, which made Emperor Jiajing very happy and a smile gradually appeared on his face.

Then the governor of Shuntian Prefecture said that he would build sky-high colored frames in four places in the five cities to display the auspicious signs and gifts from various places. He also invited acrobatics from northern Zhili and southern Zhili to perform for nineteen days next to the sky-high colored frames in the four places.

The Five Cities Military Division will send additional personnel to patrol each city to ensure that the Wanshou Festival can be celebrated peacefully.

The Minister of Revenue stepped forward tremblingly and reported the preparations for the Wanshou Festival expenses.

The Jiajing Emperor said bluntly: "The Ministry of Revenue allocated 620,000 taels of silver from the National Treasury and 1,350,000 taels of silver from the Internal Treasury. I will definitely pay for my birthday. The rest is your filial piety and contributions, no matter how much."

The Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue felt that something was wrong with this statement and could not help but glance at Gao Gong, who was also the Minister of Revenue.

I don't understand what the emperor said, Lord Gao, please give me some advice.

Gao Gong also had a headache.

The emperor is still of the same character, saying vague things and leaving me to guess.

You think about it and do it. If you do it well or do it right, he will praise you. If you do it badly and get criticized, he will turn his face and say, "Why do you misunderstand my intention?"
What the emperor said just now seemed to be a complaint about the lack of money allocated to the national treasury.

But there is really no way out, all the expenses are just a huge bottomless pit.

The huge number of royal family members spread across the country needed to be supported; the food and wages of hundreds of thousands of soldiers in the nine borders needed to be provided; the capital, Nanjing and other cities needed to be repaired regularly; the Yellow River, Yangtze River and Huai River caused floods every now and then; and there were droughts in the northwest and other places.

Countless hands were stretched out, asking the Ministry of Revenue for money and grain.

But the Ministry of Revenue doesn’t have a money tree or treasure pot.

After being in charge of the Ministry of Revenue for more than half a year, Gao Gong even began to admire the treacherous minister Yan Song a little bit, wondering how he had managed to cope with the situation for more than 20 years.

But the emperor had already said, "These are all your tributes and contributions, no matter how much."

You have to listen to this the other way around!

The inner treasury allocated 1.35 million taels of silver for the Wanshou Festival, 70% of which should have been paid by the Coordination Bureau as tributes and contributions from righteous citizens and businessmen.

Compared with them, the Ministry of Revenue is too stingy.

Gao Gong thought about it, gritted his teeth, and stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, the Ministry of Revenue can allocate another 500,000 taels of silver to be used for extending favors."

Only then did Emperor Jiajing nod with satisfaction.

Gao Gong heaved a sigh of relief. He had played a trick here.

The Ministry of Revenue said that it would take out another 500,000 taels of silver to be used for the purpose of extending favors, which means that the emperor would increase the salaries and wages for members of the royal family, nobles, relatives and ministers.

Everyone shared in the joy and thanked the emperor for his grace and to give him face.

However, the salary increase will not be paid out all at once, but will be increased in part every month, and a solution will be found over time.

Gao Gong gave the Ministry of Revenue a buffer period.

Seeing that Emperor Jiajing was satisfied, all the ministers in the hall secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Those who knew the inside story couldn't help but glance at Gao Gong.

It’s almost done, it’s time for you to come out and sing the highlight.

Zhu Yijun saw this and was stunned.

No wonder this small court meeting today looked wrong. The ministers were all dealing with the emperor cautiously, going along with him in everything, for fear of making him angry.

Previous court meetings were not like this. Even when the ministers were called to a closed-door meeting, there would be ministers whose opinions differed from those of the emperor. They would debate openly and secretly before reaching a consensus.

Today, the ministers are trying their best to obey the emperor.

Showing courtesy for nothing is either cheating or stealing!

Their compliance just now might be paving the way for their next actions.

Zhu Yijun immediately became alert and paid close attention.

"Your Majesty, I have received an impeachment from the Imperial Censor. This is a matter of great importance, as it concerns our ancestral system and national law. I have no choice but to report this to Your Majesty and ask for your judgment."

Emperor Jiajing blinked, his eyelids drooped twice, and glanced at his ministers.

He had been fighting with the ministers for more than forty years. He had noticed the abnormality just now and had been waiting quietly.

Now, this fish hidden deep in the water has finally jumped out.

"Go ahead."

Emperor Jiajing said lightly.

"Your Majesty, the inspector of Zhejiang Province, Chen Yijing, has submitted a memorial impeaching the admiral of the Zhejiang Navy, Lu Tong, for rashly starting a war, provoking border conflicts, ignoring ancestral rules, being disrespectful, violating national laws, gathering troops for self-reliance, and having the intention of becoming a king overseas and separatist."

As soon as Gao Gong's words came out, the atmosphere in the Wanshou Palace became extremely solemn.

These charges were swirling in the ministers' minds.

How cruel!
This time, the Jin Party was ruthless and was determined to kill Lu Tong.

Killing Lu Tan is a small matter. I believe their target is Hu Zongxian who is behind Lu Tan.

Hu Zongxian served as the Minister of War and the governor of Shanxi, Datong and Xuanfu for more than half a year. Finally, he stirred up a hornet's nest and exposed all the treasures of the Jin Party?
That's why there is a situation where the enemies are fighting to the death.

Chen Yijing, the censor of Zhejiang Province, submitted a memorial.

Zhejiang is in the southeast and is the territory of the Jiangsu and Zhejiang Party. It is impossible for the Shanxi Party to reach out to it, just as the Jiangsu and Zhejiang Party cannot reach out to the nine borders.

Could it be that the Shanxi Party and the Jiangsu-Zhejiang Party joined forces to eliminate Hu Zongxian?

My goodness, the two most powerful factions in the court have joined forces, how can Hu Zongxian withstand it!
Behind Hu Zongxian is the prince.
Everyone had different thoughts, and they all looked at Zhu Yijun, who was sitting below the emperor and remained silent as water.

Emperor Jiajing stared at Gao Gong with his cloudy eyes, a barely perceptible smile flashed across his lips, and he spoke in a deep voice.

"What's the situation? Tell me."

"Your Majesty. In April, Lu Tong led the Dinghai Battalion of the Zhejiang Navy and sailed north without authorization. He fled to Hirado Port in the East Japan. When extortion failed, he fired artillery without authorization and bombarded Hirado Port, causing thousands of casualties among soldiers and civilians.

The whole country of East Japan was in an uproar. Their shogunate was selecting envoys to cross the sea to the west to seek justice from our dynasty.
The Eastern Japanese were listed by Emperor Taizu as countries that should not be conquered. Going to war with other countries requires the court to discuss and the emperor to make the final decision. Lu Tong's various actions show that he is arrogant and disloyal. Please punish him severely!"

After Gao Gong finished speaking, the hall fell silent, and everyone glanced at the prince.

(End of this chapter)