The Ming Dynasty's Five Hundred Years

Chapter 215 Discussing Zhu Xi
Zhu Di's statement that the matter was temporarily shelved was not a simple matter of a few days. The reorganization of the Confucian Temple was a major event involving the entire country. Not only were discussions taking place in the capital, but also high-ranking officials and great scholars from the six ministries and government offices in Nanjing, as well as the thirteen provinces of the Ming Dynasty, were involved in the matter. Memorials poured into the capital like snowflakes during an avalanche.

Princess House.

Li Xianmu sat in the main seat, flanked by familiar officials, all key figures and allies of the Xinxue Party. Among them were important figures such as Zheng Huan, Minister of Rites, and Yang Rong, Grand Secretary of the Cabinet.

“Mingda, Liu Guan, the Left Censor-in-Chief, was imprisoned the day before yesterday. What you said in court before was true. Now it seems that the position of Left Censor-in-Chief is probably yours.”

Li Xianmu shook his head and said, "His Majesty may not necessarily appoint me as the Left Censor-in-Chief. It is more likely that he will select someone from the six ministers for a transfer, and I am more likely to be appointed as a minister."

Yang Rong was taken aback, then frowned and said, "The Ministers of the Six Ministries?"
You have served as the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works and the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, and were later transferred to the position of Right Censor-in-Chief. You have achieved outstanding political achievements in both the Ministry of Works and the Ministry of Rites, so it is certainly not appropriate for you to waste your time there.

Going to the Ministry of Justice would be tantamount to demotion, while going to the Ministry of Personnel would be a meteoric rise, neither of which is very likely.

"Is that the Ministry of Revenue or the Ministry of War?"

Li Xianmu nodded and said, "Some time ago, His Majesty and I talked about how Japan is importing a lot of silver every year. Although this has greatly alleviated the court's financial difficulties, the fiscal and tax situation has become somewhat chaotic in recent years. It is very likely that I will be transferred to serve as the Minister of Revenue to handle this matter."

The people in the room immediately perked up. The Minister of Revenue was the chief steward of the Ming Dynasty's finances. He was one of the top three ministers among the six ministries, and he controlled the allocation of funds for 70% of the Ming Dynasty's affairs. He wielded considerable power.

If Li Xianmu had served as Minister of Revenue, he could have taken the development of Neo-Confucianism to a new level.

Li Xianmu himself was naturally very satisfied with the position of Minister of Revenue, as it would make it easier to implement fiscal and tax system reforms.

The entire fiscal system of the Ming Dynasty can be described as rotten; he had long since become fed up with it.

Zheng Huan coughed lightly, "This is a good thing, but since it hasn't happened yet, let's keep it a secret for now. Our most important task today is to discuss the Confucian Temple."

Recently, those scholars of Neo-Confucianism have been holding separate gatherings, plotting something quite grand.

Yang Rong curled his lips, "It's nothing more than wanting to elevate Cheng Yi and Zhu Xi to the Ten Philosophers. They all know that His Majesty will definitely elevate Li Zhongwen to the Ten Philosophers. They suffered a great loss in the psychological debate a few years ago, so naturally they don't want to fall behind the School of Mind now."

Minister of Rites Zheng Huan nodded, then said seriously, "Cheng Yi has little hope of being among the Ten Philosophers, but Zhu Xi has a high probability of being included."

No one in the room voiced any objection. Zhu Xi was a must-have. In the eyes of the Ming Dynasty today, Zhu Xi was an enhanced version of Li Qi in every aspect. Moreover, if the compiler of the official textbook designated by the Ming Dynasty could not be included among the Ten Philosophers, the Confucian Temple would be a laughing stock.

Although they are now capable practitioners of the School of Mind, they all entered officialdom in their youth by studying the commentaries on the Four Books.

"The real purpose of their inclusion of Cheng Yi in the Ten Philosophers is to make exorbitant demands and use this as an excuse to bargain, so that our School of Mind will concede in the ranking of the Ten Philosophers and place Li Zhongwen after Zhu Xi."

Mingda, what are your thoughts on this matter?

Upon hearing this, everyone in the room fell into a brief silence, pondering Zheng Huan's words, before turning their gazes to Li Xianmu.

As the son of Li Zhongwen and the de facto leader of the Xinxue Party, Li Xianmu had a decisive voice in this matter.

Li Xianmu was also pondering. From his own perspective, having been taught by Li Qi since childhood, Li Xianmu naturally did not think that Zhu Xi should be ranked ahead of his father. After all, Zhu Xi's academic achievements throughout his life were only comparable to half of the "Records of the World".

However, the second half of the legacy is kept in the family and has been locked away until now, so it cannot be used as an explanation of achievements.

"The Temple of Confucius is dedicated to Confucius and Mencius is enshrined as a secondary deity. The previous four sages have been abolished and are temporarily left vacant. Only the Ten Philosophers will be retained. This is the new plan for the re-election of the Temple of Confucius."

This greatly elevated the status of the Ten Philosophers of the Confucian Temple, essentially meaning that the Ten Philosophers were the foremost after Confucius and Mencius.

Li Xianmu said slowly and in a deep voice: "They want Zhu Xi to be above my father, but they are wrong. The reasons why Zhu Xi and my father were enshrined in the Confucian Temple are completely different."

He had no significant achievements in his life and had no political influence on the Song Dynasty, so he was enshrined in the Confucian Temple because of his literary works.

Although my father had only been in office for a short time, he accomplished many great things and even served as prime minister. The emperor consulted with my father on every important national matter. When the new dynasty was first established, my father had established almost an entire system, laying a solid foundation for what followed.

These are all things that Zhu Xi could not compare to.

Moreover, the reason for reorganizing the Confucian Temple this time was precisely to suppress the Confucian orthodoxy.

Therefore, the selection of candidates should prioritize the state and the Confucian tradition. Although Zhu Xi achieved success in his writings, could his writings compare to those of Confucius and Mencius?
He synthesized the achievements of his predecessors, rather than creating something new. Therefore, his contribution to establishing doctrines should be greatly reduced. Based solely on the matter of establishing doctrines, Zhu Xi can only be ranked last among the Ten Philosophers.

If they were to bring this up during the order of precedence at future court assemblies, they would be inviting humiliation.

The people in the room pondered thoughtfully. They all understood what Li Xianmu meant. The others in the Confucian Temple, including Li Zhongwen Gong Li Qi, had all entered the Confucian Temple through the Three Imperishables.

If we use a 100-point system, to enter the Confucian Temple with the three immortal achievements, we only need the minimum standard of establishing words (80), establishing virtue (80), and establishing merit (80). However, to establish words alone, we need to establish words far more than 80 points. Confucius and Mencius, as the founders, would naturally have 100 points, but what about Zhu Xi?

It might only be 90 points, or even 95 points if you're being generous.

In terms of scholarship, even if Li Zhongwen Gong (Li Qi) was a few points lower than Zhu Xi in terms of establishing words, because his philosophy of mind was not as developed as that of the philosophy of principle, he was still above 90 points. In addition, his meritorious service completely surpassed Zhu Xi.

What they were considering was whether this argument could convince the people of the world. After thinking about it carefully for a while, they realized that in the current climate where the state was valued more than the traditional moral order, this logic was perfectly sound. The Three Immortals were enshrined in the Temple of Literature and the Ten Philosophers, while Zhu Xi was enshrined in the Temple of Literature for establishing his words. He should have been demoted.

“Mingda’s words are excellent and enough to shock all the moralists.”

"Hahaha, that's right."

Everyone in the room burst into laughter, seemingly recalling the exasperated expressions of those moralists.

After all, among the ten philosophers currently listed—Zhuge Liang, Han Yu, Fan Zhongyan, Wen Tianxiang, and Li Qi—most of these individuals held positions of power in the central government and spearheaded national policies. They were all prominent figures in their time, possessing the three immortalities (immortality, longevity, and lasting fame). After laughing, Yang Rong sighed, "Choosing the ten philosophers is difficult. Those listed so far are all heroes of Confucianism throughout history. Who else can be ranked alongside them?"

Li Xianmu chuckled and said, "Who says we have to list all ten philosophers? The four sages are also left empty. If the sages of the past can't be included, who can say that no one will be able to be included in the future?"

His words immediately made everyone in the room feel a chill, and they involuntarily looked at Li Xianmu.

Yang Rong really wanted to ask Li Xianmu, "The person you're talking about isn't yourself, is it?"

But he restrained himself, because he felt it was impossible. Although Li Xianmu was a leader of the School of Mind, such a leader was more of a political figure.

In the ten years since Li Xianmu entered officialdom, he has never made any academic achievements, nor has he published any articles. He is more like a diligent and efficient official.

Even if the Confucian Temple suppressed the orthodox tradition and valued the state, it would not allow Li Xianmu to enter, unless Li Xianmu, like Zhuge Liang and Wen Tianxiang, died for his country.

But the Ming Dynasty is thriving and invincible, with no one under heaven capable of threatening it, so he will certainly not have such an opportunity.

……

"Senior brother, there's no need to be so nervous. Uncle has always been very kind to the younger generation."

Inside the princess's residence sat three young men, all in their early twenties. Two of them looked very much like Wang Gen and were quite honest. The third young man, about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, was rather thin. His clothes were washed and turned a bit white, clean and tidy, without any trace of travel dust, but they did not look worn out. He sat upright.

These were Wang Gen's two sons and Yu Qian, a true disciple he had taken in Zhejiang. He sent them to the capital at this time for the autumn imperial examinations of the seventeenth year of the Yongle reign. Wang Gen had specially arranged for them to enroll in the Imperial Academy and take the exams in Shuntian Prefecture.

Five years have passed, and Wang Gen is no longer the mere provincial education commissioner he was during the initial psychological struggle. He was first promoted to the position of Zhejiang Provincial Surveillance Commissioner (a third-rank official), and after his three-year term expired, he was transferred to the position of Vice Minister of Revenue in Nanjing (a third-rank official) last year. His next step may be to be transferred to the position of Provincial Administration Commissioner (a second-rank official), or there is a small probability that he may return to the capital to serve as Vice Minister of the Six Ministries.

This was an extremely smooth career path, which was inextricably linked to Li Xianmu's influence in the court.

In the Ming Dynasty, there are now two paths to promotion. One is the path of becoming a Grand Secretary of the Inner Cabinet. However, Yang Shiqi, Yang Rong, and others are still in the Inner Cabinet. It is obvious to everyone that they are unlikely to be promoted. They are the people the emperor wants to reserve for the Crown Prince.

Wang Gen, on the other hand, embarked on a different path as an official. This path involved serving in outlying prefectures, with the lowest rank being a county magistrate of the seventh grade. Every three years, there would be an assessment and a transfer. After three thousand years, one would enter a prefecture as a sub-prefect, then enter one of the Six Ministries as a secretary, then leave to serve as a prefect or governor in an outlying prefecture, and then enter the provincial government as a subordinate official similar to a scholar. This was the transfer process for officials below the third grade.

Because reaching the third rank is a completely different level, belonging to high-ranking officials of the Ming Dynasty, and they can receive a posthumous title after death. The order of promotion for officials above the third rank is as follows—

The seven ministers of Beijing (second-rank ministers of the six ministries and second-rank left censor-in-chief) > two of the nine ministers (third-rank commissioners of the Court of Judicial Review and second-rank right censor-in-chief) ≈ second-rank ministers of the six ministries of Nanjing > third-rank vice ministers of the six ministries of Beijing > second-rank provincial governors ≈ vice ministers of the six ministries of Nanjing > third-rank provincial inspectors.

Of course, now there is another governor. A governor is roughly equivalent to a vice minister, which is higher than a provincial governor, but clearly not as high as the Nine Ministers. At least so far, apart from Li Xianmu's last trip to Shandong, there has been no governor with the rank of a second-grade official.

However, since the governor was not a real official position with a grade, but only a temporary post, he was not included here.

Everyone knows that Li Xianmu was a second-rank Right Vice Censor-in-Chief before he went to Shandong. He made great contributions in Shandong and now he has suggested changing the selection of the Confucian Temple. He will surely be promoted to one of the Seven Ministers afterward.

Yu Qian wasn't nervous because Li Xianmu held a high position and great power; he was simply excited because he regarded Li Qi and Li Xianmu as idols.

Li Qi looked up at Yu Qian from the sky, the historical national hero and one of the Three Heroes of West Lake.

He had a deep admiration for Yu Qian. There are many boastful people in this world, but few who can save the world like Yu Qian.

During the period when historical revisionism was rampant in later generations, Yu Qian was also deeply troubled by conspiracy theories about civil officials. Some even said that he was actually a criminal and a member of the civil official group that conspired to seize imperial power.

Li Qi had always scoffed at the Tumu Fortress conspiracy theory, especially the claims surrounding Yu Qian, which he found utterly ridiculous. If Yu Qian hadn't been a loyal minister, he wouldn't have stood by and watched Emperor Yingzong's restoration, waiting to die.

Did he not know that he would surely die after Zhu Qizhen's restoration?

Emperor Daizong Zhu Qiyu had no sons, and in the end he gave up the bloody purge of the palace, exchanging his own life for the stability of Beijing. What a great act of benevolence and righteousness this was! Li Qi really couldn't understand whether those who believed in conspiracy theories were stupid or evil.

Some people believe that after the Tumu Crisis, civil officials seized military power and broke the balance of power among the emperors. But if we ask ourselves honestly, were civil officials really that powerful? How did Emperor Xianzong manage to have six clay ministers and three paper grand secretaries?

How did Emperor Wuzong allow a mere eunuch like Liu Jin to indiscriminately kill cabinet ministers?
The corruption of the civil officials in the Ming Dynasty was so extreme that it stemmed from problems with the Ming system itself. The tense relationship between the emperor and his officials, who regarded each other as enemies, was truly rare in the history of Chinese dynasties.

Everyone in the Ming Dynasty, from the emperor, nobles, eunuchs, civil officials, and clerks, was desperately pursuing their own tiny bit of profit, disregarding the lives of the common people. They were like a pig rooting in its trough, not only burying its head in the trough but also sticking its hooves in, frantically digging around.

This scene is truly rare throughout history.

That's not entirely true. There were two or three emperors who cared about the people, and there were also civil officials like Yu Qian and Zhang Juzheng who were willing to sacrifice for the country.

"We must read books, for only through reading can we set lofty ideals. We must strike back at those corrupted scholars."

Li Qi, having governed the country for many years, had a profound realization: only scholars could save the country. The scholars he referred to included not only civil officials, but also military generals and eunuchs who had studied the classics.

Without reading books and the words of sages, one cannot understand the greater principles, but only the lesser virtues and righteousnesses. Such lesser virtues and righteousnesses are quite dangerous.

Even in later generations, even though many people did not study, they still understood many things by reading the quotations.

Li Qi stopped thinking because he saw Li Xianmu returning from court.

"Young masters, please follow me. The master has returned."

The three were drinking tea in the hall when the butler entered, called them over, and led them to the main hall. Even though they were juniors, they were still guests, and proper etiquette was essential.

(End of this chapter)