Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 44 The Dream King
The night is getting deeper and the candlelight is dancing.

Liu Yirong lowered his head and sipped. Every word Xu Guangqi said matched the facts. Liu Yirong stared at Xu Guangqi intently, watching him beam with joy, his pride evident in his words, not seeming fake. Although Liu Yirong still had doubts in his heart, he was already mostly convinced.

"Thanks to the emperor's keen vision, he was blessed with a talented son. It is a blessing for the country and the people!" Liu Yirong hinted.

"Your Majesty, your wisdom is as bright as the sun." Xu Guangqi bowed toward the Forbidden City, but he was drunk and almost bowed in the wrong direction. "But if it weren't for Imperial Tutor Sun's recommendation, I would still be training troops in Tongzhou right now."

"Are you talking about Sun Kaiyang? (Kaiyang is Sun Chengzong's nickname)" Han Yu asked knowingly.

"Who else could it be?" Xu Guangqi took another drink. "Sun Jingwen refused the Emperor's proposal to establish a new discipline. Isn't that like hitting a rock with an egg? I have some knowledge of Western mathematics. Now I have to change it to modern mathematics." Xu Guangqi burped.

"Sun Zhisheng and I are old friends (Zhisheng is Sun Chengzong's courtesy name). He knew that I had some knowledge of modern mathematics, so he recommended me to Your Majesty and gave me the opportunity to take the imperial examination. I am not talented or well-educated, but I can do my best to meet Your Majesty's wishes." Xu Guangqi showed a look of gratitude.

As expected! Han Yu felt a small sense of pride rising in his heart.

The truth was clear. The Emperor had appointed Cui Wensheng to command the Eastern Depot, but he hadn't anticipated his actions, leading him to embezzle the imperial treasury. This, in turn, convinced the Eastern Depot was becoming too powerful to be controlled, prompted the Emperor to reopen the Western Depot to rein in the guards. Xu Guangqi, who had been recommended to the capital, learned of this and devised a method to prevent the chain from turning into a dog, lest the Emperor accidentally unleash the even more rampant Western Depot of a century earlier.

"You are a man of great talent who plans things in advance!" Han Yu praised.

"This is just a clever trick to satisfy the emperor's wishes." Xu Guangqi was so drunk that he fell asleep on the table.

"Someone come! Send Lord Xu to the guest room to rest." Liu Yirong called out.

Xu Guangqi was a strong man, even big and strong, but it took three servants to carry him away.

After Xu Guangqi left the table, Liu Yirong raised his glass to toast Han Yu.

Han Yu raised his glass and said with emotion, "Your Majesty is so magnanimous. If it weren't for Your Majesty's intentional protection during today's cabinet meeting, I'm afraid tomorrow morning, I don't know how many people would accuse me of being disrespectful and unworthy of my position."

As he spoke, he took out the handkerchief embroidered with plum and bamboo from his arms.

There was an unwritten rule in the Ming Dynasty that if a minister who prided himself on his integrity was widely attacked by public opinion, he should take the initiative to request to resign and return to the countryside to show his true feelings.

The court is currently in a state of equilibrium. While the Donglin faction dominates, the remaining factions, if united, are capable of competing. If this matter were to leak, it would undoubtedly be blown out of proportion. Rumors can melt metal. If Fang Congzhe were to follow public opinion and exaggerate a few words in his memorial to the emperor, the Donglin Party would likely lose a cabinet seat.

"This is a sensitive period. You'd better be more careful. Don't always go to the brothels." After drinking a glass of bitter wine, Liu Yirong suddenly said, "I think the Donglin Party should reflect on this."

"Oh?" Han Yu was a little surprised. "Where did you get that from?"

"'Striving to comply with the Emperor's will,' Xu Zixian has used the phrase twice." Liu Yirong pondered Xu Guangqi's words while reflecting on recent events. "I'm certain the Emperor has already decided to crack down on the East Depot since Cui Wensheng first refused to allocate funds to the Ministry of Revenue." Liu Yirong put down his wine glass and took a sip of his sobering tea. Then he said self-deprecatingly, "The sun doesn't rise from the crowing of a rooster."

"You mean, regardless of whether we hint to the emperor through Wang An about the relationship between the confiscated funds and the imperial treasury, the emperor will take action against the East Factory?" Han Yu immediately understood what Liu Yirong meant.

"Isn't that the case?" Liu Yirong was very sure.

"That's not right. Wei Zhongxian, the Western Factory Commander, wasn't promoted to the position of scribe until we found Wang An," Han Yu questioned. "When Shen went to the inner library to teach the eunuchs, he was surprised to see a man over fifty. These things happened later."

Liu Yirong said, "The time between the two was very short. Almost as soon as we found Wang An, Wei Zhongxian was promoted to the position of Inspector. If the Emperor had done this on a whim, how could it have happened so quickly?"

"That makes sense." Han Yu nodded in agreement.

"I suspect that even the cabinet's instruction to the Criminal Department to refuse to sign was part of the emperor's plan!" Liu Yirong made a surprising statement.

"Hiss!" Han Yu took a breath of cold air.

"The Emperor never considered using the Imperial Guard to apprehend those implicated in the corruption case." Liu Yirong felt the shackles in his mind suddenly shattered by a surge of inspiration. "The Emperor is just waiting, waiting for the Imperial Guard's invitation to come to the throne to be stopped, waiting for Fang Congzhe to appear before him with the cabinet's admonition. Even if the Emperor has been in hiding for years and doesn't understand the underlying dynamics, he certainly wouldn't be unaware of the tradition of having military officers and nobles preside over inner court proceedings, right?"

"Why didn't the Emperor send Duke Ying and Duke Cheng to hear the case, but instead insisted Fang Congzhe give his opinion? And after Fang Congzhe gave his opinion, why did he insist on presenting it at court?" His doubts were resolved, and Liu Yirong felt as if every part of him had been washed clean by a spring of enlightenment. He hadn't felt this tingling sensation of light in a long time. "The Criminal Division stopped the Jinyiwei, and the Cabinet must give the Emperor an explanation. Old Fang is old and has many concerns. The Emperor can easily control him with just a few provocative words."

"If Fang Congzhe suggested that the emperor select officials from the outer court and then appoint nobles to take charge of this matter, the emperor would be speechless with just one sentence: 'Using external forces to coerce the inner court and try to emulate Jiangling.'" Liu Yirong began to talk incessantly about his speculation.

"When we were eyeing that position, he didn't dare to mention this matter at all and could only let the emperor make the decision himself. But if he had just said, 'Everything is up to the emperor to decide,' wouldn't the cabinet's actions be contradictory? The emperor's previous decision was rejected by the cabinet, so Fang Congzhe must have an opinion!" Liu Yirong also began to beam with joy, as if he was drunk.

"The first part is contradictory, and the second part is contradictory. Fang Congzhe can only offer an opinion that isn't really an opinion!" Han Yu suddenly realized. "The inner court should conduct a self-investigation!"

"Yes, Yu Chen, that's exactly what happened." Liu Yirong offered tea instead of wine as he toasted Han Yu. "Regardless of whether it's the Imperial Household Department or not, as long as Fang Congzhe, in the name of the Cabinet, announces at court that he's conducting a 'self-examination of the inner court,' that dog Cui Wensheng will pretend to have realized his mistakes and repented, and ask the Emperor to reopen the Western Depot."

"This can be considered an overt conspiracy! Not to mention an old Fang Congzhe, even if you and I were in that position, I'd probably end up with the same outcome." Liu Yirong let out a long sigh. "That's why Xu Zixian said 'trying to comply with the Emperor's will.' The Emperor wanted to put the factory guards on leashes, and Xu Zixian's fortuitous preparations could only prevent the leashes from turning into dogs again."

"So that's why you said the Donglin Party needs to reflect." Han Yu asked.

"That's right! Your Majesty is not as pure as he appears. When you are a hidden dragon in the abyss, you are just hiding your shortcomings." Liu Yirong laughed and said, "Benevolent and wise, isn't this the king that all loyal ministers dream of?"

(End of this chapter)