The Ming Dynasty's Five Hundred Years

Chapter 219 I Want to Be a Powerful Minister!
"It is also a gathering of swords and spears."

Inside Qingyun Tower, the peaceful atmosphere of the discussion was suddenly disrupted by this sentence, turning into one tinged with anxiety.

All the scholars turned their gazes toward this, wanting to see who was so blatantly exposing the matter.

But all they saw was a figure wearing a straw hat turning around and going downstairs.

"The re-election of the Confucian Temple has caused a great uproar throughout the country. Since the establishment of the Ming Dynasty, no more than ten events have been able to surpass this in terms of momentum."

"Although the sages of the Confucian Temple are not deities of Buddhism or Taoism, they are not far removed from scholars. So, the sudden change naturally had a great impact."

In the past two months, haven't countless people traveled from all over the provinces to the capital just to hurl a single insult at me?

"They're just a bunch of stubborn old men, what can they do if we smash what they're so proud of?"

Since the news of the Confucian Temple spread throughout the land, people knew that it was unstoppable. However, the world is vast and there are countless extremely conservative people. In the most extensive towns and villages of the Ming Dynasty, clans established based on Neo-Confucianism still occupy the real position.

The psychological struggle mainly took place in prefectures at the county level and above. Apart from provinces like Zhejiang, which were personally governed by Wang Gen, it had no impact on lower levels of society in many places.

But the matter of the Confucian Temple has truly infiltrated.

Thus, a strange sight appeared in the capital: many old Confucian scholars traveled thousands of miles to the capital to scold Li Xianmu.

China has a long-standing tradition of respecting the elderly. Although this incident may not have a major political impact on Li Xianmu, it was still a loss of face for him.

Fortunately, Li Xianmu had anticipated this, and soon a rumor circulated in the capital: "Those who disagree with the re-election of the Confucian Temple and utter harsh words do not have the Ming Dynasty in their hearts, so what right do they have to live in the Ming Dynasty?"

The move of "removing your nationality" has frozen those eager to try their luck in place.

Since then, the prevailing sentiment in the capital has shifted from debating whether or not to relocate the Confucian Temple to declaring that it should be chosen to enter the Confucian Temple.

Until the autumn imperial examinations begin.

After the inclusion of Neo-Confucianism in textbooks in the eleventh and twelfth years of the Yongle reign, the number of candidates choosing Neo-Confucianism in each imperial examination increased, especially among those from academies. This was naturally related to the increasingly powerful political reality of Neo-Confucianism proponents like Li Xianmu in the court.

The seventeenth year of the Yongle reign was no exception.

But for Li Xianmu, Zheng Huan, and others, the most important thing was that the grandest court assembly of the Yongle era would be held after the autumn examinations.

"Mingda, are you absolutely certain?" Zheng Huan asked with his hands behind his back. "That day will likely not be peaceful. Officials and scholars of the Ming Dynasty will gather in the palace. Who among them can overshadow them all?"

A gentle breeze blew by, and the bright sunlight shone down, illuminating Li Xianmu's eyes. He smiled and said softly, "Since the sixth year of the Yongle reign, have I ever been defeated?"

Zheng Huan was stunned for a moment upon hearing this, then burst into laughter, his laughter filled with endless emotion as he said, "Truly, you are worthy of being called Li Mingda!"

But he couldn't help but feel a pang of regret. Back then, he had decisively pledged allegiance to Li Xianmu precisely because Li Xianmu had always been winning.

In terms of official rank, Li Xianmu is currently half a rank lower than him.

However, power can never be defined by official position. Zheng Huan clearly understood that he was both Li Xianmu's ally and his subordinate.

Li Xianmu slowly clenched his fist, which was hidden in his sleeve, and his gaze followed the Vermilion Bird Avenue all the way to the Imperial Palace.

Even today, the memory of the emperor refusing to implement the decree for those from humble backgrounds remains vivid.

This made Li Xianmu wary: what is the most fundamental reason for the failure of reforms throughout history?
The monarch's support is insufficient!

Stopping reforms at the slightest setback is counterproductive. How many reforms in this world can produce results in a short time? Almost all of them take more than five years to show obvious effects. Many reforms even have growing pains in the early stages. Only after getting through the growing pains can we see the transformative effect.

If the emperor does not strongly support his implementation of the decree for those from humble backgrounds today, the emperor will not support him in doing other things tomorrow, and may even oppose his reform proposals.

After all, some reforms were targeted at princes and nobles.

"What is gained by relying on imperial power will eventually be lost when the imperial power abandons it; only one's own strength is real."

As a reformer determined to bring about change, Li Xianmu had to plan ahead. To achieve his political goals, constantly seizing power, and even usurping the emperor's power, was something he had to do.

He needs a large following and strong power that is not overly dependent on the emperor. To gather support, he must project the image of a political strongman and maintain the confidence of his subordinates and allies.

Li Xianmu knew this was a road of no return. Throughout history, those who usurped imperial power either plotted to seize the throne and establish themselves as emperors, or they died and their families were exterminated. Only a few, such as Zhuge Liang, were able to ensure that their families and descendants had a peaceful end.

Especially in the Ming Dynasty, the imperial power was supreme, and even the prime minister system was abolished. How difficult it was to seize the imperial power.
If it weren't for his father being a god in heaven, Li Xianmu would never have dared to actually embark on this road to the underworld.

“There’s still a long way to go.”

"Mingda, what did you just say?"

"I didn't say anything, just sighed, 'Life is full of hardships.'"

"Yes, life is full of hardships and difficulties, and we bear a heavy burden on our shoulders."

...The autumn imperial examinations came to a quiet close. In the provincial examinations this year, there were questions about the relative importance of Confucianism and the Ming Dynasty.

Very few people believed that the Confucian tradition was important. After all, the political winds were so clear that only those who knew they would fail the exam would make outrageous statements in an attempt to gamble on something big. But the examiners didn't care at all. As long as they believed that the Confucian tradition was important, no matter how the essay was written or what their views were, they would be rejected by all the candidates.

As a result, the imperial court received countless articles arguing why the Ming dynasty was more important than the Confucian tradition.

"Mingda, your idea of ​​including this question in the exam paper is simply a stroke of genius."

Yang Rong and the other examiners looked at the essays piled up like a small mountain. Each of the essays ranked first was a masterpiece, discussing from all angles—positive, negative, and side—why abandon the orthodox tradition to preserve the state.

These writers were the cream of the crop in the entire Ming Dynasty. They argued for this matter from countless angles, and their vast collection of articles instantly overwhelmed the conservatives who still tried to put up a stubborn resistance.

"Talented people are as numerous as carp crossing a river, and the court selects them based on their abilities. I am merely selecting those who are loyal to the country for the court."

Li Xianmu was quite pleased with himself. Even without the rumors, those old fogies couldn't say anything this time.

The things that countless candidates in the Ming Dynasty have argued about, and so many people agree on them, each with their own reasons, when put together, are almost a step into the truth.

Even if he personally went down to debate, it would still be quite difficult.

Everyone burst into laughter again, and cheers filled the room and the surrounding area. Those who were here were either completely committed to the Xin Xue Party like Yang Rong, or gradually approaching it like Yang Shiqi. Not only the Xin Xue Party, but the "Cabinet Clique" also had a bright future. The Cabinet had not seen any new or old members enter or leave for many years.

With the situation becoming increasingly clear, how can we not be overjoyed?

Yang Rong rubbed his hands together expectantly and said, "The grand court assembly is in three days, and I can't wait."

Although the others remained silent, the sudden brightness in their eyes proved that they too were looking forward to this destined grand event.

No one could help but look forward to this momentous upheaval in Confucianism, a change that has occurred only once every five hundred years.

……

September 3rd!

The sky was clear and blue, like crystal. Looking up, there was not a cloud in sight for miles around. It was a bright and sunny day. It was already late autumn, and the wind from the Yanshan Mountains brought a cool breeze.

Groups of people lined up in the square in front of the Fengtian Hall. Countless people were led into the palace in procession and then placed in their pre-arranged locations.

There were elderly men with white hair and beards, scholars with flowing beards, officials from other states wearing green robes, successful candidates in the imperial examinations, and those who had not yet passed the examinations.

This is a true spectacle!

These people were not qualified to enter the palace in the past, but today they are all here to watch. Of course, they are just watching and are not qualified to speak in this kind of occasion. They can only watch the big shots who are high in the court compete.

"I've heard that many provincial governors from other provinces are taking advantage of their return to the capital to report on their duties to attend this grand court assembly. Is that true or not?"

"It is true, of course. The provincial governors of Shandong, Henan, Zhejiang, Hubei, Guizhou and Sichuan have all entered the capital. All the ministers of the six ministries in Nanjing, except for the Minister of War and the Minister of Revenue, have entered the capital."

"These high-ranking officials coming to the capital are probably up to no good."

"Most of these high-ranking officials who came to the capital were great Confucian scholars of the time. How could they possibly be absent from such an important event as the re-election of the Confucian Temple, which has been the biggest event in the history of Confucianism for five hundred years?"
Those who remained on the sidelines were mostly not closely connected to the Confucian school and were not enthusiastic about the matter.

"It's really a storm coming."

"This is the capital city, with the emperor and all the high-ranking officials and nobles. No storm can get in here."

The person who had just been expressing his feelings fell silent, thinking to himself: What if the storm was caused by these celestial beings?

It was already quite late, and the court officials entered the palace one after another, lining up in front of the Fengtian Hall in order, but standing at the very front.

As the dukes, marquises, and high-ranking officials, dressed in crimson and purple robes, lined up at the front and back, three bells rang, and the area in front of the hall immediately fell silent.

Several eunuchs carried the imperial throne palanquin and placed it on the steps, right below the plaque of the Fengtian Hall. Then the emperor appeared with the crown prince and grandson.

Under the direction of the official in charge of ceremonies, they shouted "Long live the Emperor!" three times.

As Zhu Di gazed at the dense crowd, he suddenly recalled that it was right here that he had questioned the world.

A surge of pride welled up within him, and he spoke directly: "Today's grand court assembly will not concern itself with any other matters, but solely with the important matter of the re-election of the Confucian Temple."

I have a general idea of ​​the candidates that the ministers have submitted their memorials to me in recent days.

Furthermore, since this matter was originally proposed by Li Xianmu, the Right Vice Censor-in-Chief, let him speak first, and then the Nine Ministers will speak in turn.

Afterwards, officials of the fifth rank and above may speak.

(End of this chapter)