Ming Dynasty: A mere unruly commoner is rebelling against the heaven?

Chapter 130 The end of the year has arrived, and rewards are in order!
Mahamukhan is now in a very inflated state of mind.

As the Great Khan of the Eastern Chagatai Khanate, Mahamu Khan was able to rule a region.

In addition to having 50,000 professional soldiers, the most important thing is having the powerful general Xibani.

Ever since Shaybani surrendered to Mahamu Khan, the Eastern Chagatai Khanate has never lost any foreign wars.

Whether it was the war against the Timurid Khanate or the fight with the Golden Horde, it never lost.

Therefore, Mahamu Khan valued this distant relative of the Golden Family very much, and asked him to command the army of the Eastern Chagatai Khanate on his behalf.

In Mahamukhan's opinion,
Ahama Khan looked at Xibani with his eyes flashing and his heart filled with excitement.

They had all witnessed how strong Xibani was and had tested him themselves.

If Xibani took action, he would definitely be able to avenge his Hong Taiji and the Turpan Khanate!
Ahama Khan saluted Xibani with his hand on his chest and said: "General, please come out."

Xibani touched his chest and returned the greeting: "I am following the orders of the Khan."

In the city of Aksu, four Mongol Khans, Ahmad Khan, Mahamu Khan, and the future Shaybani Khan and Sayyid Khan, met at this moment.

They didn't know that their future destiny had gradually changed.

Just as the four Mongolian Khans were discussing the use of troops against the Ming army, the Ming expeditionary force had already arrived in Chalishi from Gaochang.

Xu Chang was stationed in the center of the army and commanded the entire army.

At this moment, a reconnaissance scout suddenly came to report.

"Report!"

"Governor! There are traces of a large number of troops stationed ahead. They must be Ahama Khan and his men!"

Xu Chang nodded: "Investigate further and report back."

"Yes, Governor!"

Chalishi is the best marching route from Gaochang City to Aksu City.

A large number of traces of garrison were found in Chalishi, indicating that Ahama Khan did indeed flee to the city of Aksu.

Before going on the expedition, Zhu Youtang assigned Xu Chang a task that was not as simple as destroying the Turpan Khanate.

What Zhu Youtang wanted was to eradicate the entire Eastern Chagatai Khanate in the northwest of the Ming Dynasty!

Now Ahama Khan fled to Aksu City. Whether he was simply escaping or asking his brother Mahamu Khan for help and troops, it was exactly what Xu Chang wanted.

The Ming expeditionary force will continue to march firmly towards the northwest and sweep across the entire Eastern Chagatai Khanate!

Xu Chang looked around and then ordered: "All troops, listen up. Rest for half an hour and then continue to march towards Aksu City!"

"Yes, Governor!"

……

The capital of the Ming Dynasty.

The heavy snow that had been falling for two days finally stopped.

The capital city was filled with pre-New Year festivities. The tense and tense atmosphere of a few days ago had quietly returned to normal.

We should always look forward. People come and go in this capital city, and there is nothing that cannot be overcome.

After the matter of the two deposed empress dowagers passing away one after another was finally settled.

The first year of the Hongzhi reign was finally coming to an end.

On New Year's Eve, Zhu Youtang originally wanted to hold a banquet for his ministers in the Fengtian Hall.

Unfortunately, the Fengtian Hall had not been repaired yet, so Zhu Youtang changed the venue of the banquet to the Qianqing Palace.

The nature of this banquet changed from an official banquet to a private banquet.

The people who participated in the banquet, apart from the concubines in the harem, were only some high-ranking officials.

At the banquet, Zhu Youtang sat high on the dragon throne with a calm face, showing neither sadness nor joy.

To his lower right sat four concubines who had been officially canonized.

Sitting to his lower left were court officials including Xu Pu, Liu Jian, Liu Daxia, Li Dongyang, and Xie Qian.

The dancers and musicians who were carefully trained by the Jiaofangsi were playing music and dancing to liven up the atmosphere.

But Zhu Youtang couldn't concentrate on watching anything and ate the imperial meal with little interest.

"Your Majesty, I offer you a toast and wish that the Ming Dynasty will have good weather, peace and prosperity in the new year!"

"Your Majesty, I, your concubine, would also like to offer you a toast and wish you a happy Spring Festival and good health!"

"..."

From time to time, concubines or ministers would toast Zhu Youtang.

On this New Year's Day, Zhu Youtang did not refuse and raised his glass to drink with him.

When the song ended, it was finally time for the main part of the Spring Festival banquet.

That is to unify the rewards for officials and concubines.

Zhu Youtang looked at everyone and spoke softly.

"My dear ministers and concubines, a year has passed and the new year has just begun. It is a day of great joy."

"In the past year, you have all made great contributions to my Ming Dynasty, so I will reward you all here."

After saying that, Zhu Youtang glanced at Fu Dahai next to him.

Fu Dahai took the order and quickly stepped forward, unfolding the imperial edict that he had prepared long ago.

"All the ministers listen to your orders."

As soon as these words came out, all the officials in the outer court, the concubines in the harem, the guards of the East and West Factories, the eunuchs and the palace maids knelt before Zhu Youtang. "I obey the order of the Emperor Tian Chengyun."

"Xu Pu, the Grand Secretary of the Jinshen Palace, has been steady in his conduct, loyal in his thoughts, conscientious in his work, and self-disciplined and respectful. He is hereby given the title of Grand Tutor to the Crown Prince, and is awarded 300 strings of precious coins and 1,000 acres of good farmland in Changping."

"Liu Jian, the Minister of Rites and Grand Secretary of Wuying Palace, is honest and upright, loyal to his duties, and pays attention to practical matters. He is specially awarded the title of Prince Taibao, 300 strings of precious coins, and 1,000 acres of fertile land in Jinghai."

"..."

Zhu Youtang first rewarded a group of civil officials. Not only did he give them the title of the Prince's Third Tutor, which was the first rank, but he also rewarded them with some precious coins and land.

They are just routine rewards, not of much value, more of an honor.

But the civil servants who received the rewards were naturally happy.

Zhu Youtang's move was undoubtedly an active effort to ease relations with the central civil servants after a series of high-pressure crackdowns.

After all, the entire huge dynasty still needs them to help maintain its operation.

He was also secretly rewarding these cabinet ministers for not standing up to make things difficult for Zhu Youtang when the two empress dowagers were deposed.

Afterwards, Zhu Youtang rewarded a group of his confidants.

"Wang Zhi, the eunuch in charge of the Imperial Horse Administration and the supervisor of the Western Investigation Bureau, has made outstanding contributions in combating corruption, handling cases prudently, and being loyal. He is awarded a dragon robe, 300 strings of precious coins, and 10 villas in the capital."

"The commander of the Xianzhen Camp, Wuding Hou Gao Shun, has made great contributions in fighting against the Tatars. He has been promoted to the position of Left Commander-in-Chief of the Central Military Commandery, and has been awarded a dragon robe, 300 strings of precious coins, and 10 villas in the capital."

"Jinyiwei Du Commander Mou Bin, for his meritorious service in handling cases and his unwavering loyalty, is awarded a dragon robe, three hundred strings of precious coins, and five villas in the capital."

"Jinyiwei Commander Assistant, Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermillion Bird, Black Tortoise, for their meritorious service in handling cases, are promoted to Jinyiwei Commander Associate, and are awarded 300 strings of precious coins."

"Liu Jin, the eunuch in charge of the Imperial Household Department and the supervisor of the Eastern Investigation Bureau, has made outstanding contributions in investigating the case of the poisoning of the previous emperor. He is awarded a bullfighting suit and 300 strings of precious coins."

When the civil servants under him heard the rewards Zhu Youtang gave to Wang Zhi, Gao Shun and Mou Bin, they were so jealous that their eyes turned red.

Everything else would have been fine, but Zhu Youtang actually gave the three of them python robes!
The dragon robe is the most noble of the four bestowed robes.

Wearing a dragon robe was the highest ideal of the ministers in the Ming Dynasty, which meant that they were deeply favored by the emperor and held the highest position among the officials!
How many important officials in the court wanted a dragon robe all their lives but could not get it.

And this time, Zhu Youtang actually gave three awards in one go!

Unfortunately, none of these three items were for civil servants.

Wang Zhi, Gao Shun and Mou Bin were also very happy.

They themselves did not expect that Zhu Youtang would reward them with dragon robes!
Of course, the biggest surprise has to be the four great guards of brocade clothes, Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermillion Bird, and Black Tortoise.

They never expected that Zhu Youtang still remembered their contributions and promoted them all to the position of Jinyiwei commander-in-chief.

On this New Year’s Eve, Zhu Youtang gave them a huge New Year’s gift!
Finally, Zhu Youtang rewarded his harem again.

"Jieyi Chen, with a virtuous and fair disposition, is beautiful and intelligent, and has won my heart. I have promoted her to the rank of imperial concubine, bestowed the title of Ning, and granted her a silver book, allowing her to reside in Jingren Palace."

"The noble lady, Ms. Dong, is a person of great virtue and talent, gentle and kind, and has been promoted to a talented person."

Chen Yuanyuan and Dong Xiaowan were extremely surprised. They never expected that their status would be promoted to a higher level within less than two months after entering the palace.

Chen Yuanyuan was especially happy. In just two months, she became an official concubine, received a title, a silver book, and was able to live in the main hall of Jingren Palace.

This unexpected surprise completely washed away all the fear and worry she had felt in the past few days.

"Appreciate this!"

When Fu Dahai finished reading the last word, all the foreign ministers, eunuchs and concubines who were rewarded present expressed their gratitude.

"Thank you for your grace!"

Zhu Youtang raised his hand and said, "Everyone, stand up and sit down."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Everyone stood up and sat back in their original seats.

Then Zhu Youtang looked at the Jiaofangsi again and waved his hand.

"Then play music, then dance."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

At the banquet, singing and dancing began again.

While eating and drinking and watching the dance, Zhu Youtang chatted with several ministers from the six ministries of the cabinet about several important state affairs for the next year.

"Liu Jian, the provincial examination will be held next year. This year's provincial examination will select three times more candidates than in previous years."

Zhu Youtang's light words startled several civil servants at the banquet.

The number of officials directly managed by the Ministry of Personnel in the Ming Dynasty had exceeded 20,000 by the end of the Chenghua period.

Add to that the minor clerks and staff hired privately by these officials, as well as the meritorious military generals, the officials of the Ming Dynasty were already very numerous and complicated.

It was only because Your Majesty had executed a large number of Beijing officials this year that the shortage of redundant officials was alleviated.

And now, Your Majesty is going to triple the number of candidates required... What does Your Majesty mean by this?
Does Your Majesty think that not enough officials have been killed?

Do you need to save money in advance for emergencies?

Liu Jian was suspicious in his heart, but he dared not disobey. After all, this was a rare good thing for scholars all over the world.

"Yes, Your Majesty. I obey your command."

"By the way, this year's provincial examination essay questions mainly focus on the three aspects of the Imperial Edict, land survey, and currency reform."

"I want to see how many of the candidates in this world can understand my reform plan."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Liu Jian took a deep breath. After hearing Zhu Youtang's words, more than half of the provincial examination questions in the two capitals and thirteen provinces had to be changed.

　Thanks to Mr. An Siqi for the three rewards and support!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)