Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 446 The Third Sin
The bell for the dismissal of court had already rung, but Left Censor-in-Chief Zhang Wenda showed no sign of leaving. This was not only because he had been quite busy lately, organizing the firsthand information gathered by Li Zongyan and his men and compiling the baojia register, in addition to his regular duties, but also because he had just received a reply from the palace, or rather, the "upper court's decision" regarding the "self-reported report from the imperial examination."

Zhang Wenda's self-introduction is quite lengthy, covering his entire life, from his family background and educational experiences to his work and achievements over his decades in government, and finally his recent physical and mental health. It could be considered an autobiography. Furthermore, the essay is not only lengthy and comprehensive, but also vivid and elegant, with a wealth of allusions and witty remarks, clearly demonstrating the immense effort put into it.

But if we set aside these great efforts and simplify the complexities, the article can be easily summarized. This is because he did not deviate from the purpose of the self-representation petition in the imperial examination, which was to seek removal.

In short, Zhang Zongxian took time out of his busy schedule to write an ornately worded article, describing in detail the image of an old, frail, incompetent, and mediocre official who was unworthy of his position, and requested the emperor to dismiss him.

If this were an impeachment memorial, it would have caused a huge uproar, as the wording could have been taken to the level of a death sentence. However, as a self-reproach memorial, it was only mediocre. If it had been written by the old Hanlin scholars sitting in the cabinet, they could have written it more beautifully, or even more harshly.

As expected, the emperor did not dismiss Zhang Wenda, but instead included several moving imperial edicts urging him to stay. These edicts refuted Zhang Wenda's self-deprecation point by point, repeatedly reiterating the emperor's regard for and appreciation of his veteran minister, and expressing his hope that he would continue to contribute to the Ming dynasty. Even more valuable, these edicts went beyond empty rhetoric to retain him. Instead, they enumerated Zhang Wenda's achievements during his tenure and even offered a subtle tribute of gratitude, alluding to the case of the "Piercing Attack." It's worth noting that Zhang Wenda had been dismissed by the previous emperor for his insistence on a public trial for Pang and Liu.

Although Zhang Wenda knew that the letter of consolation was likely written by a eunuch, such as Wang An or Liu Ruoyu, he was still moved to tears. Zhang Wenda had already decided to include the full text of the self-appeal and the emperor's reply in his own collection of essays and to have his son excerpt key passages to be engraved on his tombstone as an epitaph.

At this time, the doorman came to deliver another letter. However, the old doorman, who was quite old, entered the lobby of the Censorate but did not dare to go any further. Zhang Zongxian was in tears, his eyes red. Although he clutched a handkerchief, he did not wipe his tears away, letting them fall onto the table.

Zhang Wenda noticed someone approaching and calmly wiped his eyes with a handkerchief. "What are you doing?" His tone revealed his displeasure at the doorman's interruption. As for embarrassment, Zhang Wenda had none. At his age, his skin was as thick as a city wall. Furthermore, these were tears of gratitude to the emperor; if they got out, it would be a beautiful story. There was nothing to be ashamed of.

"This" the doorman was terrified, thinking that the Chief Justice was remembering his long-deceased mother.

"If you have something to say, say it. If not, get out." Zhang Wenda sniffed. "Stop hesitating here."

"I just received another letter." The doorman held up the envelope in his hand.

"Which government office is this from?" Zhang Wenda waved to the doorman, asking him to bring it over.

"It was sent from the post station." The doorman walked quickly to Zhang Wenda's desk and handed the large, rather thick envelope to Zhang Wenda.

"Where is it from?" Zhang Wenda took the envelope and weighed it gently.

"They said it was sent from Liaodong." The doorman replied.

"Why Liaodong again?" Zhang Wenda frowned. "Anything else?"

"No more." The concierge shook his head and said, "Just this one envelope."

"Alright, go ahead." Zhang Wenda breathed a sigh of relief. The last time he'd sent a package from Liaodong, Xiong Tingbi had simply sent him a head, and then a rather troublesome case unfolded. Zhang Wenda suspected that the contents of this envelope were likely another nuisance, but as long as no head was delivered, it wasn't serious enough to warrant execution first and then report.

"Yes." The doorman breathed a sigh of relief. He bowed, turned around, and walked away quickly, all in one go, without stopping.

Zhang Wenda calmed down a bit, closed the letter with the warm decree attached, and put it away. Then, pinching the edges of the contents, he carefully tore open the envelope, and with a few swipes, he shook out the letter. Zhang Wenda unfolded the letter, took a quick look, and his nerves, which had just relaxed, tensed again.

Zhang Wenda realized that the reason why the Liaodong side did not send anyone over was not because the nature of the case was not serious, but because Xiong Tingbi's imperial sword and royal flag could not kill the people involved in the case at all.

This was an investigative report, an impeachment-like report. Its target was Wan Youfu, the deputy commander of the Guangning Dao's military training program, and a group of nobles, led by Li Mingcheng, the Marquis of Wuqing. The crime the report laid out was the trafficking of ironware.

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The next morning, the letter from Liaodong was sent to the cabinet by the Ministry of Public Administration. Along with the letter, there was also a memorial written by Zhang Wenda, the Left Censor-in-Chief.

"Prime Minister!" Liu Yirong's voice broke the silence in the duty room.

Fang Congzhe was sipping his tea and meditating when he was startled by the sudden shout. Fortunately, he had already taken a few sips and the water level in the cup had dropped significantly, otherwise a few drops would have spilled onto the table. "Ji Hui, what's wrong?" Fang Congzhe put down the teacup steadily and looked up at Liu Yirong. Liu Yirong was looking at him anxiously, holding a stack of soft letter paper in his hand. "Whose letter is it?"

Although Fang Congzhe didn't know what Liu Yirong was going to say at this moment, Fang Congzhe was keenly aware that what Liu Yirong was about to say must be a big deal.

"It's a report from the Xiantai, and also a memorial from General Zhang!" said Liu Yirong.

"Xiantai? Is there something wrong with the Imperial Inspection?" Fang Congzhe didn't want to touch base with the Imperial Inspection, fearing it would bring him into trouble. So, on the day the emperor officially issued the order for the Imperial Inspection, Fang Congzhe explicitly instructed Han Yu, the last official in charge of distributing memorials, to hand over the memorials from the Ministry of Personnel and the Censorate to Shen and Liu Yirong for drafting.

Although all draft memorials had to pass through his position as Prime Minister before being presented to the emperor, Fang Congzhe could not escape the responsibility of "overseeing the imperial examination." However, by having other cabinet ministers submit their drafts before he reviewed them, he could share some of the responsibility. At the very least, he would not be criticized by censors and minor officials for his arbitrary behavior, as he had been during the Dingsi Imperial Examination.

"It's not the imperial examination," Liu Yirong shook his head. "Something happened in Liaodong."

"What's going on?" Fang Congzhe's heart tightened. Nothing good had happened in Liaodong in the past three years. Even the occasional good news was only a small joy. If something serious happened, the sky in Beijing would probably fall.

"It's from Yang Wenru in Guangning," Liu Yirong said, standing up and approaching Fang Congzhe under the gaze of the other ministers. "He says he's investigating the illegal sale of ironware, a case the emperor ordered him to investigate some time ago, and there's been some results."

"Oh, oh, really. I thought something had happened." Fang Congzhe relaxed a lot, and his heartbeat returned to normal. "Ji Hui, I'm old, don't scare me like that."

"Prime Minister, please forgive me," Liu Yirong said, handing the letter and memorial to Fang Congzhe. "This case not only involves the Guangning Circuit Intendant, but also involves the Marquis of Wuqing, the Marquis of Yangwu, and the Earl of Pingjiang." "What?" Fang Congzhe frowned, though his surprise was only momentary. "This is truly troublesome."

There was nothing strange about nobles and relatives engaging in illegal smuggling. Among the various crimes committed by nobles, economic crimes such as smuggling for profit were only a minor matter. However, if such a matter became a big deal, the cabinet would have to bear the brunt of the blame from both sides.

Fang Congzhe knew with his toes that the censors and officials in the outer court and many of the nine ministers would definitely demand a thorough investigation, but the emperor would often want to keep things quiet for various considerations. Amidst the conflict between the two sides, the cabinet would ultimately be in trouble.

Sure enough, when Fang Congzhe opened Zhang Wenda's memorial, he found that there was not a single word of nonsense in it. It started with a request to the emperor to allow the Censorate to send a commissioner from its department to investigate the case strictly and not to tolerate or condone it, which would undermine the national strategy.

If the Chief Censor of the Imperial Court was acting in such a manner, I'm afraid the lower-ranking officials in the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Internal Affairs would already be busy writing memorials to accuse him. After reading the letters and memorials, Fang Congzhe froze in his seat, remaining silent for a long while.

"Prime Minister," Ye Xianggao's voice came from beside Liu Yirong just as he was about to ask for advice. "Is Li Guangrong involved in this case?"

Li Guangrong, formerly the deputy general of the Western Association of Jizhen, was transferred several times after the rebels rebelled and invaded the border. He is currently the general of Guangning, responsible for defending against the Western Bandits. He is a general in the Liaozuo area.

"No, at least not yet." Fang Congzhe came back to his senses and put away the letter and memorial. "Jin Qing, take it and read it. After you've read it, show it to everyone."

"Let me do it." Liu Yirong took the initiative to lend a hand to help Fang Congzhe pass it on.

"Thank you." Ye Xianggao nodded and took it, and Fang Congzhe also sat back.

After Liu Yirong handed the letter and memorial to Ye Xianggao, he turned to look at Fang Congzhe. However, just as he called out "Prime Minister," before he could ask any questions, Fang Congzhe spoke up, "Ji Hui, if you have any ideas, just say it."

Liu Yirong was stunned for a moment, then cursed inwardly, "Cunning!" This old man was good in every way, except that he was unwilling to be the first to take responsibility. At the slightest trouble, he would retreat to the sidelines and insist that others make the first decision.

"Prime Minister, I believe," Liu Yirong said with a frown, "that since the investigation has yielded results, we should report directly to the Emperor for his decision."

"This naturally requires the emperor's decision." Fang Congzhe also complained to Liu Yirong in his heart: It's the same as not saying anything.

Ye Xianggao had also finished reading the letter and memorial and passed them to Shi Jikai. "Prime Minister, since the case has been reported to the Censorate, we must investigate further. Otherwise, public opinion will be unfair."

Fang Congzhe nodded, but did not speak immediately. After a moment's silence, he replied, "I do want to investigate further, but I'm afraid we'll come back empty-handed."

"As long as we can give an explanation, it won't be considered a failure." The person who spoke was not Shi Jikai, who was reading letters and memorials, but Shen, who was sitting below him.

"What explanation? How to explain?" Fang Congzhe asked immediately.

"Naturally, whoever did it must explain. As for how to explain it, the laws of the Ming Dynasty are still in place, so we will deal with it according to the law." Shen's words were vague, but Fang Congzhe immediately understood what he meant. Although the case implicated nobles and relatives, the nobles named in the letter were all in Beijing, and they had never personally carried out the business. If the servants who actually carried out the business were thrown out, the matter would be explained, and the cabinet would be able to escape the dilemma. However, this would require secret collusion. It would also require the emperor's forgiveness.

"Yeah." Fang Congzhe nodded deeply and looked at Shi Jikai again.

"Prime Minister, I think the Deputy Prime Minister's concerns are not unreasonable." Shi Jikai thought Fang Congzhe was seeking his opinion. So, while passing the letter and memorial to the lower-ranking Shen, he said to Fang Congzhe, "Although this letter does not mention Li Guangrong, we should immediately notify the Ministry of War and ask them to quickly select an officer to temporarily replace him during the investigation."

Fang Congzhe saw that Shi Jixie was not there to consult him, but rather to receive the letters and memorials in his possession. He had already decided to accept Shen's advice and headed straight to the Southern Study to see the emperor.

"Indeed, it's better to be prepared." Since it was right, Fang Congzhe was willing to accept it. "Shicheng, please draft a document to the Ministry of War according to this idea. I will go to the study later to present the memorial to the emperor and convey your intention to him."

"Yes." Shi Jikai started writing immediately.

Shen received the letter but didn't even read it carefully. He glanced at it briefly, confirming that the contents of the letter and memorial were generally consistent with his guess, and then passed it to Han Yu. Han Yu nodded, took it, and after a few glances, asked, "What should Wan Youfu do?"

"What's there to say? Are we going to keep him in office? Of course we should dismiss him from office and replace him with a new governor," Shen continued.

"Hmm." Fang Congzhe looked around at his colleagues. "Who do you think would be a good replacement for Guangning Dao?"

"It's not too late to discuss the replacement later. For now, we can let Ningqian Dao Wang Huazhen take on the role. Wang Huazhen is my student, and I know him well." Ye Xianggao suggested.

"Okay. Jinqing, please draft a bill according to this idea." After waiting for a while, Fang Congzhe stood up from his seat and walked quickly to Han Yu.

"Okay." Ye Xianggao nodded.

"Prime Minister. Please." Han Yu understood and handed the letter and memorial back to Fang Congzhe.

Fang Congzhe took the letter and memorial and glanced at the crowd. "Does anyone have anything else to say?"

Everyone shook their heads in silence, and Fang Congzhe then turned and left, heading towards the South Study.

(End of this chapter)