Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 357: The Zhu Family's Caravan
"That's right, that's right!" Li Zongyan felt that Wang Zheng's "seven evils" and "seven restraints" were quite insightful, and were indeed a warning that gentlemen should always take into consideration, so he couldn't help but nod his head frequently.

But despite nodding, Li Zongyan did not record these unnecessary details. He then asked, "Who taught you Western learning?"

"It's Mr. Pang, the author of 'Qi Ke'," Wang Zheng replied.

"Has Pang Shunyang been to Shaanxi?" Out of respect for the scholar, Li Zongyan did not call him "Pang Diwo" by his real name.

"No, Mr. Pang has never been to Shaanxi." Wang Zheng shook his head and explained, "In the 44th year of the Wanli reign, I came to Beijing to take the imperial examination. I took this opportunity to be in Beijing with Mr. Pang. I also learned Western literature and Western learning from him, as well as the Western philosophy of 'respecting heaven and loving people.'"

"The 44th year of the Wanli reign, Bingchen. Was that the year when rumors spread that Jesuits were secretly colluding with the White Lotus cult and were planning to commit treason?" Although Li Zongyan had never known much about the Jesuit figures and deeds, in recent days, in order to cooperate with Zhang Wenda in investigating this major case, he still read through all the information he could collect.

"Sir, Mr. Pang has no secret connection with the White Lotus Cult." Wang Zheng's expression was a little anxious, but his tone was not harsh.

"Don't be impatient." Li Zongyan waved his hand. "I just asked if it was that year, I didn't say he had a secret connection."

"That year." Wang Zheng sighed and bowed again in apology. "My student is being rude."

Li Zongyan nodded. "If I remember correctly, after that case, all Jesuits were expelled. Did you follow them to Southeast Asia?"

"No." Wang Zheng suddenly felt as if he were being interrogated by Li Zongyan. But he still answered with all due respect, "I personally witnessed that incident, but I had already left the capital and returned home before Lord Pang and Lord Xiong were expelled."

While the Nanjing Incident had roughly the same impact in both northern and southern capitals, its consequences occurred slightly differently. In July of that year, missionaries Wang Fengsu, Xie Wulu, and others were arrested by the Nanjing authorities and immediately taken to Macau. Meanwhile, Pang Diwo, Xiong Sanba, and others in Beijing were expelled from Beijing and taken to Guangdong only after Emperor Shenzong issued an imperial edict condemning the Jesuits, including Wang Fengsu, for "establishing a religion to mislead the people and harboring ulterior motives." By then, Wang Zheng had already heeded Pang Diwo's advice and returned to Jingyang, Shaanxi.

"Have you joined that religion?" Li Zongyan gently scraped the remaining ink at the bottom of the inkstone with the tip of his pen.

Wang Zheng nodded and said, "Before the incident, the student had already been baptized and accepted Christianity under the auspices of Master Pang. Master Pang even gave him a Western Buddhist name, 'Philip.'"

In fact, for the scholars who converted to Christianity, there was little difference between believing in Western religions and believing in Buddhism or Taoism. Taking a Western name was similar to taking a Buddhist or Taoist name. Wang Zheng, for example, had three self-names: "Kui Xin," "Liao Yi Dao Ren," and "Philippe."

"How to write it?" Li Zongyan asked again.

Wang Zheng thought for a moment and said:

"The 'Fei' in 'It is a magnificent piece of writing, and I do not know how to edit it.'"

"'When one's likes and dislikes are uncontrolled within, and one's knowledge is tempted by external influences, and one cannot reflect on oneself, then the principles of Heaven are destroyed.'"

"'Bo' means the eldest son, who is closest to his father."

"These three characters are taken from The Analects of Confucius, The Book of Rites and The White Tiger Pass respectively?" Li Zongyan wrote down "I have converted to Christianity, and my Dharma name is Philip" and other words on the booklet.

"Yes." Wang Zheng nodded and asked, "Can students still take this job?"

Li Zongyan paused, looking up at Wang Zheng with a smile. "Of course. Some of the people who came before me also converted to Western religions and took Buddhist names like you. Don't worry, it's nothing. I'm just writing down what needs to be noted, and I'm also helping General Zhang screen them. Don't wait until you find out they're just filling in the gaps."

"There is another question." Li Zongyan waved to the yamen runner closest to him.

"What instructions does the Zhongcheng have?" The bailiff came quickly.

"There's no ink left." Li Zongyan put down his pen and handed the empty inkstone to the yamen runner.

"Yes." The yamen runner left with the inkstone. Li Zongyan then said to Wang Zheng, "This is just my personal curiosity. You don't have to answer."

"Excuse me, Zhongcheng." Wang Zheng imitated the yamen runner and changed his words.

"Since you learned Western learning from Western Confucian scholars, why did you come to the Xiantai to help investigate the case?" Li Zongyan looked at Wang Zheng steadily.

"The ancestral decree, "The Great Edict," says, 'Those scholars and officials in the world who are not employed by the emperor are those who exclude themselves from the teachings.' Since I have this knowledge and the court needs it, I should come out and serve the court. I have wasted more than 20 years, and now that I have this opportunity, how dare I waste my time any longer?" Wang Zheng said.

Li Zongyan was moved. Just as he was about to speak, he heard Wang Zheng sigh:
"Besides the public's thoughts, I also have my own private concerns. During the teaching, Mr. Pang once told me that he had traveled thousands of miles across the sea solely to visit the Great Country and learn about God's teachings there. He had no evil intentions and would never dare commit evil deeds. For years, I have never doubted this, especially since Mr. Pang has already buried his bones in China and cannot return to his roots. However, rumors have been spreading recently, and even with just a few words, I am inevitably shaken. Therefore, I would like to take this opportunity to see the full picture of the Jesuits from these letters, which best reflect the true intentions of the people, to resolve my confusion."

Li Zongyan made no comment on Wang Zheng's words. After nodding silently, he simply said, "The documents of General Zhang and the Westerners are in the Jiage warehouse. Can you find them?"

Wang Zheng shook his head.

Li Zongyan summoned another yamen runner and ordered, "Come, take him away."

"Yes. Please come this way." The bailiff waved his hand.

"Student, take your leave." Wang Zheng bowed and said goodbye.

"Go." Li Zongyan's eyes followed Wang Zheng until his back disappeared around the corner, then he silently withdrew his gaze.

Just as Li Zongyan closed the booklet and prepared to do other things, a young civil servant with a face very different from that of ordinary people walked up to him.

Facing Li Zongyan's puzzled gaze, the sixth-rank civil servant introduced himself, "I am Tang Ruowang, the Spring Official of the Imperial Observatory, appointed by His Majesty. I have seen the notice posted at the Xiantai and intend to help the court by investigating the case of rebellion."

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At six quarters past noon, the sky was already bright, and the servants of the Inner East Factory had almost finished the chores they were supposed to do early in the morning.

In the lobby, Admiral Cui Wensheng was browsing through some medical books. Even though the emperor had stripped him of his position as head of the Imperial Pharmacy, he still frequently browsed these books, even often attending classes taught by the imperial physicians at the Medical Study Hall south of the Inner East Factory.

This was partly because he was genuinely interested in medicine and possessed some of the skills of a mediocre doctor, knowing how to mix aphrodisiacs and laxatives. It was also partly because Cui Wensheng simply had too much free time. Previously, the Northern Pacification Division was supervised by the Eastern Depot, allowing it to have oversight of all cases. However, after the Western Depot was re-established, both the Northern Pacification Division, which specialized in criminal justice, and the various Jinyiwei offices, which handled a wide range of matters, now submitted their cases to the Silijian headquarters for review by the Western Depot. As a result, the Eastern Depot was completely removed from the Jinyiwei system, with even its personnel no longer sharing responsibilities.

Therefore, after the purge of the inner court was declared over and the bloodshed in the East Factory prison was cleared, Cui Wensheng found that he had nothing to do except going to the Outer East Factory, or the Foreign Service Bureau, to review the foreign service and watch the foreign soldiers train.

It didn't intervene in criminal cases or public security, and neither the inner court nor the outer court cared about anything. This made Cui Wensheng question the necessity of his own existence. Since the Jinyiwei handled public security patrols and criminal cases, and the Jinyiwei was supervised by the Western Depot, what was the need for the East Depot? He couldn't always wait for the Western Depot to fully investigate everything before following a list given to him. Wouldn't that make the East Depot a subordinate to the Western Depot?

If Cui Wensheng were the governor of the Western Depot, he certainly wouldn't mind the west wind prevailing over the east wind. He would not only suppress them, but also suppress them severely, ideally forcing them to kneel at his feet and grovel. But once his position was changed, the thought of having to kneel at Wei Zhongxian's feet and grovel was unacceptable to him.

Wei Zhongxian? What the hell is this? Where did this scabby guy come from?

Cui Wensheng really wanted to ask the emperor for a set of operating regulations similar to the "Imperially-Decreed Regulations for the Western Investigation Factory" or the "Provisional Banking Regulations" so that he could clarify the scope of his duties and take the initiative to find something to do. However, he was hesitant to do so, fearing that the emperor would say that he didn't even know what he should do.

Just as Cui Wensheng was staring at the medical book and daydreaming, Cui Yuan, who was dressed in casual clothes, led a dozen bearded men and walked up to him.

"Your son, Cui Yuan, greets his godfather." Cui Yuan knelt and kowtowed. The dozen or so men Cui Yuan brought in only knelt on one knee. "Greetings to the factory director!"

Cui Wensheng closed the book and focused his gaze. "Everyone, get up."

"Thank you, godfather, factory director!" Everyone stood up.

"Is this the person you picked?" Cui Wensheng's gaze passed over Cui Yuan at the front of the line and swept behind him.

"Yes." After Cui Wensheng assigned Wang An's mission to the East Factory to Cui Yuan, Cui Yuan didn't immediately leave Beijing for Tianjin. Instead, he went to the East Factory's archives and retrieved the roster and merit book from the Foreign Service Bureau. "They were all recruited from Tianjin, and they all participated in the recent house raids."

Cui Yuan turned sideways and pointed at the two people closest to him. "These two are from the fishing families of Beitang."

"Yeah." Cui Wensheng nodded and waved to the men. "Don't hide back there. Come closer and let me take a look."

Several men responded and walked up to him, but still kept their heads down.

"Everyone, look up!" Cui Wensheng ordered, "I don't want to miss your foreheads."

Several people raised their heads in response. Cui Wensheng's eyes swept across their faces, but he only saw helplessness and confusion on them.

"You haven't told them what to do yet, right?" Cui Wensheng asked Cui Yuandao.

Cui Yuan responded, "Godfather, I understand."

"Then let me tell you." As soon as Cui Wensheng opened his mouth, the men immediately clasped their fists and pretended to listen attentively. "Please give me your instructions, Director."

"There's a war going on in Liaodong, you all know about it, right?" Cui Wensheng asked first.

"I know." The men didn't know why the factory director brought up this matter, so they looked at each other, nodded foolishly, and answered incoherently.

"Then do you know where the military rations and salaries for Liaodong are shipped from?" Cui Wensheng asked again.

The hall fell silent. The men stared at each other in bewilderment. After a moment, a sturdy, dark-faced man was the first to react. He shouted, "Beitang! Liaodong's military rations are shipped from Beitang!"

This man was not one of the fishermen in Beitang selected by Cui Yuan, but a soldier of the Left Guard of Tianjin who had escaped. Before he signed up to be a recruit of the East Factory, he worked as a laborer at the dock in Beitang.

"Very good." Cui Wensheng nodded with satisfaction, pulled out a drawer, and took out a small silver ball weighing about two taels, tossing it to the man. "Here, the emperor's reward for you." He always said this when giving rewards to people.

"Thank you, Director!" The man caught the silver ball amidst admiring gazes and knelt down.

"Kneel over there!" Cui Wensheng said, pointing in the direction of the Qianqing Palace.

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" The man simply kowtowed twice in the direction Cui Wensheng pointed.

Before he could stand, Cui Wensheng continued, "It's been over a year since the Tianjin Finance Department was established. Yet, waste in Liaodong and the court's spending haven't decreased in the slightest. This is abnormal, and there must be something wrong. We at the East Factory worship Guan Yu, the Holy Emperor, and we despise corruption the most. The task I've assigned you is to secretly uncover the root causes of this corruption."

"Yes." Everyone responded.

"Go ahead and do your job well. If you do well, I'll personally report your achievements to the Emperor. Then the reward won't be just this small."

"Yes!" This time, everyone's response was much louder than before.

Cui Yuan arrived early and walked quickly, as if he was just deliberately showing his men around to show Cui Wensheng around. A moment later, the dozen or so men mounted their horses from the Outer East Depot at the Dong'an Gate and rode slowly all the way to the Chaoyang Gate, then whipped their horses south.

At almost the same time they left Beijing, a group of merchants returning from Liaodong also returned to the capital via Yongdingmen.

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At three quarters past four in the morning, the Zhu Hui caravan, which had left home after the New Year's Day to purchase food, fodder, and livestock and transport them to Liaodong to make a profit, returned to the Mansion of Duke Chengguo Zhu in Dashiyongfang with a nervous mood.

The caravan halted about twenty feet from the main gate of the Zhu Mansion. After dismounting, leader Zhu Hui didn't immediately approach. Instead, he stood there blankly, gazing at the imposing main gate and the massive lanterns adorning its eaves. This was the first time in his career in the grain and horse business that he felt so reluctant to return to his residence.

But he couldn't just leave it at that. He was a domesticated dog, not a stray one. He couldn't just wander around outside all his life. Zhu Hui took two deep breaths and walked towards his home. He mentally prepared himself as he walked, but the more he prepared, the more it collapsed. When Zhu Hui reached the door, his already restless heart beat even faster.

(End of this chapter)