The Ming Dynasty's Five Hundred Years

Chapter 14 For the sake of the Way, even death is acceptable; the heart is as firm as iron.

Those members of the Li clan who disagreed with the verdict were thrown out by the Imperial Guards.

Liu San Niangzi burst into tears. The benefactor had not deceived her; there was still justice in the world. She kowtowed in gratitude, and then left, her steps uneven, as if she were walking on clouds.

A commotion broke out in the Ministry of Justice courtyard, with everyone whispering among themselves.

This verdict almost completely overturned the previous verdict, which was a severe punishment for the Li clan, but a new beginning for Liu San Niangzi!
Chen Ying shook her head. "Prince Consort, do you know what you're doing? Many people will criticize you. Liu San Niangzi is just a commoner; she can suffer a little for now."

Li Qi took all of this into account and calmly said, "Zhuangzi once said something that I really like, and I'd like to share it with you all today: 'If the whole world praises you, you won't be encouraged; if the whole world criticizes you, you won't be discouraged.'"

Even if the whole world criticizes me, I will only follow the righteous path.

How can a sparrow understand the ambition of a swan?
Chen Ying hadn't expected Li Qi to act this way. "The righteous path? What righteous path?"

Chen Ying asked him what the right path he spoke of was, and the scholars and literati he brought were also looking at him, all of them curious about why he had made such a judgment.

Li Qi did not explain, but only said, "The time is not yet right. You will all know in the future."

He walked outside the hall and stood there lost in thought.

The case of Liu San Niangzi severely punished the Li clan, embarrassed Li Yuanming, and the subsequent interrogation of the magistrate of Liuhe County were all aimed at implicating Li Yuanming.

It wasn't just a family feud within the Korean royal family.

There's also the overall situation at play.

In the agreement between Li Qi and Zhu Yuanzhang, Zhu Yuanzhang gave him the power to handle cases, while Li Qi was responsible for stirring up trouble among the literati and seizing their right to speak.

Then Li Qi would have to face the leaders of Shilin directly, challenge them, and then defeat them.

One of the key figures behind the downfall of the Korean government, Li Yuanming, the former Minister of Rites, was a renowned Confucian scholar!

Li Qi naturally chose Li Yuanming, stirring up trouble in the scholarly circles while also scattering the ashes of his enemy—a win-win situation.

However, Li's original name was different from Yang Jing's.

Yang Jing was merely an official, while Li Yuanming was a recluse in the mountains, a highly respected Confucian scholar of his time, and extremely adept at knowing when to advance and retreat.

In the twenty-third year of the Hongwu reign, after dealing with the Han state government, Li Yuanming retired from public life and went straight to retirement.

This kind of mouse, which likes to hide in the dark, will not come out unless a sufficiently tempting bait is thrown out!
The case of Liu San Niangzi was the first case Li Qi handled after investigating the Hu customs. It was a bellwether that everyone in the world would pay attention to.

A smart man like Li Yuanming could definitely guess that Li Qi was targeting him. It was as if Li Qi was openly telling Li Yuanming, "I know what you've done. Are you ready to fight?"

This is Li Qi using himself as bait to lure Li Yuanming into a trap.

……

Li Yuanming and Zhan Hui, who had been secretly watching Li Qi since Yang Jing's death, already knew about this when Liu San Niangzi came to court.

The two were quite moved when they met again. Yang Jing was still there last time, but this time everything had changed.

Zhan Hui said, "Li Qi has made such a big fuss this time, and it's directly targeting your clan, Duke Zishan. It seems that the matter has already been leaked, and there's no room for escaping it."

Li Yuanming's face darkened. "Li Qi's sword is aimed at the Li family, and his intention is to target me."

After Yang Jing's death, Zhan and Li exchanged a letter and eventually guessed that Yang Jing was exposed because of his instigation of Zhao Cheng, the magistrate of Jiangpu County.

Neither of them were involved in that incident.

Now that Li Qi has defied public opinion and stirred up such a huge storm as the Liu San Niangzi case, he must be seeking revenge.

"Since there's no room for luck, let's fight it out. Even the once-powerful Han State government was destroyed, so what's there to fear from a mere criminal?"
Li Qi was eager for revenge this time. As soon as he gained power, he couldn't wait to implicate the officials and even the clans of the whole country. Everyone was guilty!
Extremely stupid!

Since he personally made the knife and handed it over, wouldn't it be a waste not to stab him to death? Li Yuanming pondered, "Zishan, you are the current official, so you should take charge of the censorate and impeach him in court."

I secretly fueled the flames. His severe punishment of the Li family affected not only the Li clan, but also countless scholars supported by the clan.

"I have some reputation in the scholarly circles, so I gathered my students to jointly submit a memorial. Everywhere, in the imperial court and among the common people, there are calls for my execution; he will surely have nowhere to turn!"

In the present Ming Dynasty, there is no prime minister. The Minister of Personnel is known as the Heavenly Official, and is truly above all other officials.

Zhan Hui also concurrently served as the head of the Censorate and the Left Censor-in-Chief. He held the power to impeach officials and promote them, and countless officials wanted to gain his favor.

Moreover, Zhan Hui did not come from a poor background. His father, Zhan Tong, was also a Minister of Personnel in the Ming Dynasty. Both generations of his family held high-ranking official positions, indicating a deep and distinguished family background.

At his command, countless officials would act as his henchmen.

Li Yuanming should not be underestimated either. He served as Minister of Rites for many years and was a renowned Confucian scholar with countless students.

His reputation among scholars far surpassed that of Zhan Hui. Despite his retirement, he was still able to stir up trouble and was, in some ways, even more difficult to deal with than Zhan Hui. The deceased Yang Jing was a level below both of them.

Under normal circumstances, it would not be easy to kill these two people; it would require extremely serious political issues to have a chance.

"Duke Zishan"

It is quite a coincidence that both Zhan Hui and Li Yuanming's courtesy names are Zishan.

Hui believed that the matter should be allowed to ferment further, as Li Qi was likely to be in the emperor's favor at the moment, and it would be inappropriate to impeach him rashly.

He's offended more than just the two of us this time. Once public opinion builds up, we'll ride that wave of public opinion and crush him completely!

Zhan and Li exchanged a glance and burst into laughter at the same time.

……

Thanks to the efforts of Li Qi, Li Yuanming, Zhan Hui, and other dedicated individuals.

The verdict in the Liu San Niangzi case quickly spread throughout the capital, and the matter was being discussed everywhere in the city.

Compared to the rural people who depended entirely on clan power, the people of the capital, whose lives were closer to those of the urban class, did not react as strongly.

They were just talking about the cruelty of the Li clan and the misfortune of Liu San Niangzi.

However, the countless students who had settled in the capital were in an uproar.

This is challenging their understanding.

The capital of the Ming Dynasty was located in the south, so it was naturally the base camp for students from the south.

They were all supported by the clan and were beneficiaries of the clan system.

In their eyes, Li Qi's retrial was a betrayal of moral principles and lawlessness, and was simply outrageous to both gods and men!

Li Qi, however, ignored the rumors and continued to investigate the case.

Inside the Ministry of Justice, Li Qi gazed quietly out the window. Although it was the height of summer, he seemed to see withered grass and trees, fallen leaves and faded flowers.

The autumn wind brings desolation, and the high winds are deadly.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Shi Shilin was in an uproar, and complaints arose everywhere. Chen Ying asked Qi if he regretted it. Qi replied, "I borrow the words of Xin Qiji from the Song Dynasty: 'For the sake of the Way, even if I die, my heart will be as firm as iron!'"

Resounding as gold, as firm as a rock! — Biography of Li Qi, History of Ming

(End of this chapter)