The Ming Dynasty's Five Hundred Years

Chapter 203 What crime have I, Li Xianmu, committed?
The atmosphere in the capital was strange.

As the top news headline in the Ming Dynasty today, Li Xianmu's return to the capital yesterday quickly spread everywhere.

He entered the palace to pay homage to the emperor, and was then personally escorted back to Princess Lin'an's residence by the crown prince. Although it was not said, both the emperor and the crown prince expressed their attitude towards Li Xianmu.

No one was surprised.

Putting aside the matter of the Duke Yansheng, Li Xianmu's actions in Shandong this time highlighted his image as a "loyal minister of the Ming Dynasty." In particular, his words at the Duke Yansheng's residence had already spread far and wide, and everyone who heard them said, "Duke Mingda is truly a pure minister, and his loyalty is as bright as the sun and moon."

Even though he later sold out the Duke of Yansheng, it wasn't for personal gain; it was ultimately for the emperor's sake. It was perfectly normal for the emperor and the crown prince to protect such a minister.

But something's not right.

This is a behavior that makes people feel very uncomfortable, both psychologically and physiologically. It is contrary to the natural order, the Tao will not exist, and morality will decline.

If even the Duke of Yansheng can be abandoned, then wouldn't the Confucian school's hard-earned reputation, a reputation that could rival the emperor, become a joke?
Without this signboard, without the laws of heaven and the moral order, what else can restrain the emperor?

This was the inner thought of most of the intellectuals who impeached Li Xianmu. In the eyes of most people, Li Xianmu was simply a heinous criminal.

However, in Li Xianmu's view, the Confucian school's practices all along were nothing but a joke.

From the time Dong Zhongshu created the concept of the interaction between Heaven and Man in an attempt to limit imperial power, but ended up opposing it and actually strengthening it, imperial power has been continuously advancing over the past 1,500 years, while the power of ministers has been steadily retreating.

From sitting and discussing doctrines, to standing and obeying orders, and now to kneeling and obeying orders.

In ancient times, the word "臣" meant servant. Now, "臣" has truly become the servant of the "君" (ruler). The emperor regards his officials as servants, the world as his private property, and the people as pigs and dogs.

It can be said that every struggle ended in utter failure!
How dare they even bring out such garbage? Besides, the way of survival of the Duke of Yansheng's mansion and the Confucian school is seriously at odds with the path of the Li family.

It was only a matter of time before the two sides broke off relations.

Now that the Duke Yansheng has revealed such a huge flaw, if Li Xianmu doesn't take good care of it, he would be doing a disservice to the Duke Yansheng's death.

The news that Li Xianmu would attend the grand court assembly in two days spread like wildfire, reaching the ears of all who were interested.

He was getting close to the Crown Prince's faction and was considering whether to continue submitting memorials, since the Crown Prince had clearly supported Li Xianmu.

Moreover, although Li Xianmu maintained a distant relationship with the Crown Prince's faction, he saved the Crown Prince on several crucial occasions.

The most resolute among them were naturally those who had lost the psychological battle. Their goal was simple: it seemed that killing Li Xianmu was out of the question. The emperor didn't want to kill anyone, so nothing they did would work. The only way to get rid of him was to demand that Li Xianmu be killed.

There were also many opportunists among them, all aiming to remove Li Xianmu. After all, Li Xianmu was too young, and if he remained in a high position, he would inevitably lead a new political force and redraw the current political landscape.

Of course, there are both opponents and supporters. Since entering officialdom, Li Xianmu has never lacked supporters, especially young people with lofty ambitions. Li Xianmu is their idol, and everyone has fantasized about making great contributions and rising rapidly to rule the country like Li Xianmu.

After the two imperial examinations in the twelfth and fifteenth years of the Yongle reign, in which the School of Mind was involved, more and more scholars from the common people began to study the School of Mind. Naturally, their views on the Duke Yansheng differed from those of Neo-Confucianism.

These people's power is now not to be underestimated, but it has not yet been demonstrated in the court. If it takes another ten to fifteen years, the political power in the court will also change.

This is precisely what many established factions fear.

In this strange atmosphere, everyone knew that the grand court assembly would be anything but peaceful, with knives sharpened and knives poised to strike at Li Xianmu; it would be a hunt.

They believed that Li Xianmu would not surrender easily, otherwise he would not have appeared so openly at the grand court assembly. But this time, they did not believe that Li Xianmu could escape.

After all, the emperor would never dare to personally intervene and side with Li Xianmu!

Li Xianmu will fight alone at the Grand Court Assembly, facing a massive army of Confucian scholars!
……

The eastern sky began to lighten with the first light of dawn, then a golden streak leaped up, spreading out like flowing water and staining the corners of the sky.

The glazed tiles on the roof of the palace buildings shone in the golden morning light, their splendor dazzling and radiant. Reflected on the vermilion palace walls, the true red was interspersed with speckled gold, truly a magnificent and noble sight, far removed from the image of a royal sanctuary.

The officials in the palace walked in formation like a flowing stream, some in purple robes, some in red, birds in their finest attire, beasts in their bared teeth. This group of hypocrites, standing at the pinnacle of the Ming Dynasty, entered the Fengtian Hall in turn.

As a high-ranking official of the second rank, Li Xianmu was naturally at the front of the civil officials' line, second only to the Ministers of the Six Ministries and the Left Censor-in-Chief. Even though he was in the queue, people would glance at him from time to time, but he remained expressionless, as if he had not noticed these gazes at all.

Even low-ranking officials knew that something big was about to happen in the Fengtian Hall today. After all, most of the officials in the court, whether out of their own good or out of helplessness, had submitted memorials impeaching Li Xianmu.

After the formalities were completed and the emperor shouted "Long live the emperor!" three times, the grand court assembly officially began. Before the words "Please report if you have any matters to report" were even finished, and even the usual meeting procedures were disregarded, an imperial censor immediately jumped out.

"Your Majesty, the Duke Yansheng died at the hands of traitors because of the fault of Li Xianmu, the Right Vice Minister of the Censorate. He had not returned to the capital in the past, and had been making excuses and delaying. Now that he is in the palace, we can no longer make excuses. Please, Your Majesty, grant Li Xianmu death, do justice for the Duke Yansheng, and do justice for the Most Holy Teacher."

"Your Majesty, I second that proposal." "The Duke of Yansheng is a descendant of a sage. If Heaven had not given birth to Confucius, the world would have been plunged into darkness. Given the contributions of the Sage Confucius, no amount of favor towards his descendants would be excessive. Yet Li Xianmu has caused the Duke of Yansheng to die at the hands of traitors. He is truly to blame. I beg Your Majesty to issue an edict to execute Li Xianmu, so that the people of the world may submit to the impartiality of the court."

Knowing full well that the emperor would not order Li Xianmu's execution, he still demanded it, which was like asking for the moon and then trying to bargain.

The people in the hall were not surprised by this. Most of them remained still, preparing to observe the situation and see how Li Xianmu would respond.

Li Xianmu remained firmly in his position, not moving unless the emperor called his name.

Then another imperial censor stepped forward and said loudly, "Your Majesty, it is indeed a pity that the Duke Yansheng died at the hands of the traitors, but it has nothing to do with the Duke Mingda. On the battlefield, swords have no eyes. We can only say that the traitors were brutal. I think it is ridiculous to blame the Duke Mingda for this."

"Your Majesty, we second that proposal."

Several more people came forward, expressing the same sentiment, but their numbers were far fewer than those on the other side, and their influence in the court was quite disparate.

The Minister of Rites exchanged glances with Li Xianmu. This was one of Li Xianmu's most prominent allies in the court, but as the Minister of Rites, he was not in a position to speak about the matter of the Duke Yansheng.

Zhu Di then pointed to several ministers, saying, "You are all important officials of the court. What do you think?"

Most advocated punishing Li Xianmu, but sentencing him to death was too much; the most severe suggestion was to punish him with caning followed by exile.

At this point, things were already quite unfavorable for Li Xianmu, because only a very few people thought he was right. Zhu Di also frowned slightly, wondering how Li Xianmu could turn the tide under these circumstances.

Arguing illogically is useless; only by genuinely persuading and explaining the reasoning behind the argument can one succeed.

"Li Xianmu." Zhu Di frowned and turned his gaze to Li Xianmu. Seeing that he still showed no sign of tension, he felt slightly relieved. "You heard what the officials said just now. Do you know your crime?"

Li Xianmu stepped out from the queue, bowed respectfully, and then looked around at the assembled officials in the hall before solemnly saying in a deep voice, "Your Majesty, I reply."

If someone betrays Your Majesty and I kill him, am I guilty?

If someone betrays the Ming Dynasty, and I kill him, am I guilty?

These two sentences caused a murmur of unease to rise among the officials.

Li Xianmu didn't care; he remained immersed in his own world and spoke slowly and deliberately:
"The truly guilty one is not the minister, but the Duke Yansheng who betrayed the sages and did not die for his country."

If I must confess my guilt, it is for the sake of loyalty to the Ming Dynasty.

If I must confess, then it is for the sake of upholding moral principles!

"Gentlemen, am I, Li Xianmu, guilty?"

Li Xianmu kowtowed heavily in the hall. His voice was clear and melodious, neither hurried nor slow. It was like a mountain breeze that swept across the stream and entered people's hearts. Then the wind grew stronger and stronger, blowing the grass and trees in the mountains fiercely. Finally, although he did not roar, he carried an infinite momentum, as if the stones and trees in the mountains were all swept up by the gale, and dark clouds pressed down horizontally!

Inside the Fengtian Hall, all was silent.

The courtiers were astonished.

Zhu Di gripped the handle of the dragon throne tightly, feeling a surge of joy, though he did not show it on his face.

He surveyed the assembled officials in the hall.

The next instant, a scream rang out, "Absurd!"

"What utterly absurd words!"

"Li Xianmu, do you intend to exonerate yourself with such baseless accusations?"

"How dare you utter such arrogant words in the Hall of Supreme Harmony, before His Majesty!"

These rebuttals came crashing down like a storm in an instant, with more than a dozen voices simultaneously threatening Li Xianmu from all sides.

"It's reasonable not to raise your voice."

Li Xianmu looked around and said calmly, "Don't be anxious, everyone. I'm right here. Do you think I can run away? If you want to frame me and kill me, come one by one."

This calm demeanor left people speechless.

In such a critical situation, he still had the courage to remain calm even if Mount Tai collapsed in front of him.

(End of this chapter)