I was compiling the daily records during the Wanli reign

Chapter 173 A Twist! Little Wanli: Bringing All the Clowns to the Surface

September 16th, the second day of Shen Nian's suspension from work and staying at home.

Because the tabloids revealed a great deal of detail.

Furthermore, the imperial court has confirmed that the owners of Yaodong Trading Company are Shen Nian's father, Shen Yaoshan, and his father-in-law, Gu Dongyi.

Criticism of him intensified both in official circles and among the general public.

The Office of Transmission was overflowing with memorials; curses echoed through the streets and alleys.

Officials and scholars cursed him as a hypocrite, while merchants and common people called him a corrupt and wicked man.

Local tabloids in the capital continuously published poems and articles criticizing Shen Nian from different perspectives.

Some shameless writers know that they can gain attention and receive royalties by writing articles attacking Shen Nian, so they do not hesitate to fabricate stories in order to gain fame and fortune.

Some say Shen Nian had a mistress in the capital, others say he paid people to make him famous, and still others say his father bribed high-ranking officials to slander him.

Since the time of the Hundred Schools of Thought.

The imperial court has become increasingly lenient in its control over public discourse, which has led some people to speak recklessly and fabricate stories out of thin air.

In addition, Shen Nian achieved early success, and his talent and strategy surpassed those of many officials.

Many people want to see him fall from the heights of success into the depths of despair.

After returning home, Shen Nian stopped paying attention to the rumors circulating outside.

He ate when he was supposed to eat and slept when he was supposed to sleep, and his daily life consisted of spending time with his mother, wife, and son, living a very comfortable life.

He believed that the imperial court would surely clear his name.

……

In the afternoon, at the Hanlin Academy, in the Shuchang Hall.

The twenty-eight junior scholars were either sitting at their desks writing the lessons their instructors had assigned them, or gathered in twos or threes to discuss memorials copied from the Grand Secretariat, or two people staring at each other, debating something with great enthusiasm...

The academic atmosphere is very strong.

at this time.

Suddenly, Zhang Zhi, a junior scholar (ranked 98th in the third class), stood up and pointed at Feng Mengzhen, a junior scholar (ranked 3rd in the second class), saying, "Kaizhi, stop making excuses for that hypocrite! The words of the tabloids may not be credible, but the fact that Yaodong Trading Company is expanding wildly, and that the hypocrite's father and father-in-law are undoubtedly the owners of Yaodong Trading Company, is enough to prove everything!"

"He is no longer fit to be our instructor. I think we should follow the will of the people and immediately impeach him with a joint petition, so that this hypocrite can be completely removed from the court!" Zhang Zhi said, raising his voice.

Upon hearing these words, all the junior scholars stood up and looked at the two of them.

Feng Mengzhen shook her head.

"Don't call him a hypocrite! Shen Shijiang is our instructor and our mentor. The court has not yet investigated this matter thoroughly, and we should not listen to the rumors circulating in the streets and follow the crowd blindly!"

“Your mentor? He’s your mentor! I’m ashamed to have such an instructor!” Zhang Zhi retorted.

Zhang Zhi is thirty-five years old this year. Among the many junior scholars, he is considered an elder brother and has always looked down on Shen Nian, who is twenty-seven years old.

Hear this.

Tang Xianzu, a junior scholar (ranked first in the second class), walked up to him with a displeased expression.

“Zhang Zhi, I believe in Instructor Shen’s character. There must be something more to this. It is your right to impeach him, but if you fabricate stories and use street rumors as evidence, I will definitely impeach you afterwards!” Tang Xianzu stared at him, his expression very serious.

"Hmph! Tang Yireng (Tang Xianzu, courtesy name Yireng), everyone here knows that you have a close relationship with that hypocrite. Now that your patron is about to collapse, are you getting restless?"

Swish!
Zhang Zhi suddenly climbed onto the desk and looked at the assembled scholars with an excited expression.

"Gentlemen, the inside story of Yaodong Trading Company has been completely exposed by the people! Shen Nian, this hypocrite, will surely be dismissed. Why don't we join forces to impeach him now, and let the officials of the court and the people of the world see the spirit of our generation of junior scholars in destroying the false teacher for the greater good!"

After he finished speaking, not a single junior scholar responded to him.

"What? You're too scared? This kind of hypocrite is destined to be infamous for eternity. We stand on the side of justice, on the side of the people, and no one will dare to target us!"

After he finished speaking, no one paid any attention to him.

Shen Nian held a very high position in the hearts of the scholars.

At this time.

Zhang Sixiu, who had been standing to the side with a pout, stepped forward.

"Zhang Zhi, don't try to portray yourself as so great. Aren't you just trying to make a name for yourself by stepping on Instructor Shen? I think you've miscalculated. I also believe in Instructor Shen's character!"

Zhang Zhi opened his mouth, but didn't dare to refute Zhang Sixiu.

He didn't want to antagonize the Grand Secretary's son, and the other man immediately saw through his true intentions.

Among the probationary officials, his knowledge, connections, and financial resources were all below average.

If one does not gain fame and do something extraordinary, the chances of staying at the institution in the future are extremely low.

He ignored Zhang Sixiu, looked around, puffed out his chest, and said, "Whether I act for personal gain or for the public good, you will all know soon enough. If you don't have the guts to impeach that hypocrite, then I will impeach him!"

"Still cursing?"

When Feng Mengzhen heard Zhang Zhi calling Shen Nian a "hypocrite," she became furious and yanked hard on the table where he was standing.

Suddenly, Zhang Zhi lost his balance and fell off.

Tang Xianzu, being kind-hearted, worried that the man might hit his head on the ground, so he quickly helped him up.

Unfortunately, Zhang Zhi didn't appreciate it at all.

He first shoved Tang Xianzu aside, then raised his fist and charged at Feng Mengzhen.

This wasn't the first or second time that these young scholars had gotten into a fight.

Feng Mengzhen was not to be outdone and immediately began to fight with him.

"Feng Mengzhen, I never expected you to be such a sycophant to that hypocrite. Next, I will impeach you as well!"

aside.

When Tang Xianzu heard Zhang Zhi still insulting Shen Nian, he could no longer bear it and rushed forward with his fist raised.

boom! boom! boom!
Zhang Zhi was physically weak and was no match for Feng Mengzhen and Tang Xianzu.

Not long after.

He was knocked to the ground, clutching his head and curling up in agony.

at this time.

Shen Shixing, the Hanlin Academy Reader-in-Waiting in charge of the Hanlin Academy, strode over.

"Stop! All of you stop! If you don't stop, I will expel you from the Hanlin Academy immediately!"

Upon hearing this, the three of them stopped.

After learning the whole story, Shen Shixing glanced at Zhang Zhi, whose face was bruised and swollen, and looked down at him. He felt he should have come later.

He paused for a moment and said, "Every junior scholar has the right to submit memorials and offer advice; no one else has the right to interfere!"

"However, His Majesty has forbidden officials from discussing this matter privately. No further discussion of this matter is permitted in the Shuchang Hall. Anyone who wishes to submit a memorial to impeach him can simply write it and submit it to the Office of Transmission. There is no need to consult with others!"

"Yes, Scholar Shen!" Everyone bowed in unison.

Immediately, Zhang Zhi, looking indignant, went to draft a memorial impeaching him.

……

And this moment.

Under the personal supervision of Feng Bao, officials of the Office of Transmission were reviewing the memorial impeaching Shen Nian.

Emperor Wanli could accept memorials that demanded a thorough investigation of Yaodong Trading Company and Shen Nianzhi, based on rumors circulating in the streets.

However, those unofficial memorials that were based on hearsay, embellished, and baseless against Shen Nian would certainly be severely punished by the young Wanli Emperor.

He and his cabinet were sometimes very busy.

They were busy writing these baseless and fabricated memorials. Officials who wrote this type of memorial were treacherous, acting for personal gain rather than for public good. Only by investigating them could the court be brought to order.

……

September 17th, afternoon.

Before the imperial court could reveal the truth behind the rapid expansion of Yaodong Trading Company...

Chessboard Street.

A caravan that had received favors from Yaodong Trading Company recounted the company's charitable acts of helping small merchants and its kindness towards its employees.

Similar offers include: taking a 10% cut, doubling monthly wages, paid leave, and providing schooling and vocational training for the children of shop assistants.

The local merchants in the capital simply did not believe that any merchant could do such a thing, assuming that these people must have been hired by Shen Nian, and immediately started fighting with them.

Surprisingly, the local merchants in the capital were no match for the Shandong merchants, and instead suffered a severe beating.

They had just been beaten up.

The Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Five Cities Garrison then arrested both sides.

What these merchants from the capital didn't know was that if they were to slander the Yaodong merchants in places like Shandong, Shanxi, and Henan, where the Yaodong merchants had previously assisted, those merchants and ordinary people who had received assistance could beat them so badly that they would be unable to take care of themselves for the rest of their lives.

Yaodong Trading Company has won the recognition of countless people with its unique business methods. To slander Yaodong Trading Company is to destroy their livelihood.

……

September 18th, early morning.

Cao Wei, acting on the orders of the young Wanli Emperor, posted the results of his investigation into the Yaodong Trading Company at public notice boards in various locations, including Daming Gate, the Hanlin Academy, and the Shuntian Prefecture.

This announcement details a series of measures implemented by the Yaodong Merchant Guild to revitalize northern commerce in response to the upcoming Single Whip Law of the imperial court, as well as numerous regulations to support local small merchants and implement the "Order for Relief of the People and Support of Workers".

In short: to facilitate trade in the north, to benefit the people, to serve the court, and to contribute to the new policies.

The reason why Yaodong Trading Company could do business that others dared not do, and dared to make local merchants that others dared not provoke compromise, was that it gained the help of many officials from prefectures, counties and townships.

On the one hand, they had the support of the people; on the other hand, their backer was the young Wanli Emperor.

The young Wanli Emperor informed merchants throughout the land.

"Yaodong Trading Company was established for the sake of the court, the new policies, and countless merchants and people in the north of the Ming Dynasty. It does not act for its own benefit or profit, and is truly a model for merchants in the world. The court should support it. If other merchants can also do business for the sake of the Ming Dynasty, the court is also willing to support them!"

After this announcement, all those who had slandered and insulted Shen Nian fell silent.

At this moment, they are all clowns.

At this moment, their foolish actions made the Shen family even greater.

Many people silently tore up the tabloids that slandered Shen Nian, many locked themselves at home and dared not go out, and many others apologized to Shen Nian and deeply repented in crowded streets and alleys.

at the same time.

Many details of Yaodong Trading Company's operations, as well as the story of Shen's mother's numerous acts of charity in Qiantang, which earned her the title of "Female Bodhisattva of Qiantang," have been exposed.

The winds of change swept through the streets and alleys, and all that could be heard was praise for the Shen family.

Some people are not bad at heart.

They were just too passionate and too emotional. A couple of days ago, they were the ones who criticized the most harshly, but today, they are also the ones who praise the most vehemently.

Near noon.

The imperial court released a list of officials who had exaggerated and disregarded the facts in their impeachment of Shen Nian, and fined them one month's salary.

The common people fabricating rumors is a sign of ignorance, but it is an unforgivable mistake for court officials to maliciously slander their colleagues with exaggerated language.

For a while.

Officials from various government departments also began to discuss it.

"After this incident, Yaodong Trading Company will surely develop even faster. With His Majesty as their backer, is there any business in the world that they cannot do?"

"Alas! When will I ever have such a father and father-in-law? Now, even if Shen Shijiang doesn't work hard, his promotion speed will be much faster than ours!"

“My father also wants to stop doing business for the family and dedicate himself to the court, but... but my family is poor. Shen Shijiang’s father and father-in-law are already well-off. They are doing this entirely to secure a better future for Shen Shijiang. We simply don’t have the means!”

……

Soon, Shen Nian regained her freedom and returned to the Hanlin Academy.

After Shen Shixing's explanation, he learned that the young Wanli Emperor had been helping Yaodong Trading Company all along, and that the reason why the young Wanli Emperor only made the announcement three days later was to punish those officials who liked to distort the truth and attack others in their memorials.

The young Wanli Emperor's move was a triple win.

Firstly, it intimidated officials, making those who liked to attack their colleagues based on rumors wary.

Secondly, with the Yaodong Trading Company gaining widespread fame, the imperial court's support will shift from covert to overt, leading to a booming development of trade in the north.

Thirdly, Shen Nian gained greater prestige as a result, and his position in the court will be more secure and he will rise to higher positions more quickly.

……

In the afternoon, at the Hanlin Academy, in Shen Nian's official residence.

Shen Nian was processing official documents when she suddenly heard a noise outside the door.

"Pfft!"

Shen Nian glanced towards the door and saw Zhang Zhi, a junior scholar, kneeling in front of it.

"Instructor Shen, I was wrong, I was wrong, I was deceived, I was ignorant, I shouldn't have submitted a memorial to slander you!" Zhang Zhi kowtowed heavily to the ground.

Shen Nian learned from Shen Shixing that Zhang Zhi had impeached him.

He is unable to distinguish right from wrong, stirs up trouble, and seeks to gain fame by betraying his mentor.

Such actions.

It was almost exactly the same as Liu Tai's impeachment of Zhang Juzheng last year.

Success brings fame and lasting renown, while failure leads to infamy and being universally condemned.

With just a word, Shen Nian could have persuaded Shen Shixing to expel him from the Hanlin Academy and strip him of his status as a junior scholar.

Shen Nian looked at him.

"Zhang Zhi, you're not being deceived, nor are you ignorant; you're just too eager for fame, your heart is corrupted!"

"Yes, yes, I...I'm not human, I...I'm not human!" Zhang Zhichao kowtowed violently on the ground.

"enough!"

Shen Nian gave a cold shout, stopping his cowardly behavior.

He originally intended to teach Zhang Zhi a lesson before forgiving him.

But seeing that the other party was spineless and lacked any backbone in order to advance his career, he couldn't help but feel disgusted.

"Go back! The Imperial Household Department has its own regulations on how to punish you!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Zhi's face turned deathly pale.

According to the regulations, he could be expelled from the Hanlin Academy and stripped of his status as a probationary official simply for defaming his teachers.

Without the status of a junior scholar, he was just an ordinary third-class scholar in the imperial examinations. Given the mistake he had made, he would most likely spend his life serving in some poor, remote place.

Seeing that Shen Nian had turned her face away and refused to pay attention to him, Zhang Zhi had no choice but to stand up and leave with a look of despair.

Shen Nian watched his retreating figure, shook her head, and sighed deeply.

In officialdom, everyone should be held accountable for the mistakes they have made.

The court dared not give important positions to officials whose character was corrupt.

Zhang Zhi's current predicament wasn't caused by a single wrong step, but rather by his having already gone astray in the first place.

(End of this chapter)