Huangming

Chapter 75 Heavenly Mirror Punishes Corruption, Testing Imperial Power (Please continue reading!)

The Zhejiang soldiers were arguably the elite of the Ming army.

The core backbone was the four thousand miners recruited by Qi Jiguang in Yiwu.

Because of their strong discipline and hard work, the miners became the main force of the Zhejiang soldiers.

The soldiers from Zhejiang were skilled in mountain warfare and close-quarters combat, and were known for their strict discipline. They were famous for their "Mandarin Duck Formation" during the war against Japanese pirates.

Later, soldiers were recruited from Chuzhou, which was inhabited by many mountain people who were fierce and good at fighting. Together with the soldiers from Yiwu, they were known as the "Wu-Chu soldiers".

The soldiers from Chuzhou mostly served as musketeers and shield bearers, working alongside the long-spearmen of the Yiwu miners.

However, as time went on, Zhejiang soldiers recruited soldiers in other regions. Fishermen from Ningbo and Taizhou, skilled in naval warfare, later followed Zhejiang soldiers to Jizhou to participate in border defense.

The garrison system collapsed in the later years of the Wanli reign, absorbing many deserted military households and refugees, which led to a decline in combat effectiveness.

Of course, the Zhejiang soldiers were far more powerful than the spoiled brats of the Beijing garrison.

After all, the Zhejiang soldiers had participated in the Wanli Emperor's aid to Korea and were called "the Southern soldiers are fiercer than tigers" by the Japanese army.

Such elite troops should naturally be kept in hand and used as the emperor's personal guard.

Now that Zhu Youxiao has purged the officials of the Censorate and the Imperial Secretariat, most of the cabinet members are his people.

The Minister of War was right in front of me.

Once Zhu Youxiao issued the imperial edict, no one dared to object.

If he had issued an imperial edict to summon troops from outside the capital before the court officials had actually received a beating from him, it would have been rejected and the troops returned without a doubt.

As for the excuses they gave for their rebuttal, they were naturally varied and numerous.

But now times have changed.

Yuan Keli, standing to the side, said with some concern, "Your Majesty, aren't three thousand soldiers a bit too few?"

The Beijing garrison, which was said to have 100,000 men, couldn't even stir up a ripple when 3,000 Zhejiang soldiers entered it.

"Rest assured, Yuan Qing, I have made arrangements."

He ordered the Ministry of War to send 3,000 men to the capital, and those in the Beijing garrison would naturally have the same thoughts as Yuan Keli.

Three thousand people?
What's the use?
Naturally, there wouldn't be any decent resistance.

However, summoning three thousand Zhejiang soldiers to the capital was merely a ruse by Zhu Youxiao.

He also has a hidden trick up his sleeve!
However, since it's a confidential matter, let's leave it aside for now.

Yuan Keli was worried, but considering the new emperor's methods these days, he temporarily put his mind at ease.

The new ruler is not the kind of person who acts on a whim.

He must have made thorough preparations for this.

"In addition, I have another matter to entrust to Minister Yuan."

Yuan Keli was taken aback for a moment, then immediately asked, "What does Your Majesty mean by this?"

He had just been reinstated and was deeply grateful for His Majesty's favor, but he never expected to be entrusted with such an important task.
"I have received the Mandate of Heaven to rule the throne and to eradicate corruption, and this will not be limited to punishment. I shall establish the 'Heavenly Mirror' to serve as a stark warning, emulate the Song Dynasty's 'Washing Away Wrongs' to record cases, and follow the example of Emperor Taizu's 'Great Proclamation' to clarify the laws and punishments. All those who have harmed the country and its people shall have their crimes recorded and their sins exposed, so that the world may know that corrupt officials are like fish being boiled in a cauldron, and even if they are turned nine times over, they will not be able to escape the net of their crimes!"

That's right.

Zhu Youxiao wanted to compile a book to, to some extent, seize the discourse power of the Donglin Party!
He glanced at Sun Chengzong and Yuan Keli.

Yuan Keli's eyes widened, and his withered fingers suddenly clenched.

His temples, frosted with age from three reigns, trembled slightly without wind, like autumn reeds bearing dew, and a sickly flush appeared on his withered face.

After being shocked, Sun Chengzong immediately returned to his original color.

He thought to himself: This is something His Majesty is capable of doing.

Seeing the two men's shocked expressions, Zhu Youxiao continued, "Once this book is completed, the Ministry of Rites shall distribute it to the schools. All candidates for the children's examination must recite its outline, the provincial and metropolitan examinations must test their understanding of its essentials, and the palace examination's policy questions should use it as a standard. This will make scholars fear the law even before entering officialdom, and remain vigilant even after receiving their salaries. I have used the pen and ink to forge a mirror, reflecting the emptiness of the five aggregates; I have used cinnabar and azure to paint skins, revealing the true forms of all demons and monsters!"

His voice grew increasingly impassioned. "If future officials read this lesson and repeat the same mistakes, they will be either foolish or insane, and will be treated like human pigs to be fed to wolves and tigers. You should all strive to do so!"

After the emperor finished speaking, even Sun Chengzong couldn't hold back anymore.

If this book were included in the imperial examinations, the corrupt officials whose names were written about in it would be infamous for eternity.

But this book...
This will certainly be met with strong opposition from the Shihlin community.

This was because it shook the foundations of the Donglin Party and even the entire civil service system.

Historically, it's not uncommon for emperors to have done this.

In the twelfth year of the Yongle reign, the "Complete Collection of the Four Books and Five Classics" was promulgated, unifying the interpretation of the imperial examinations and completely excluding other schools of thought (such as Lu Jiuyuan's philosophy of mind).

In the tenth year of the Jiajing reign, under the pretext of the "Great Rites Controversy," it was required that the essay topics include the "Classic of Filial Piety," but this did not break through the framework of the Four Books and Five Classics.

Emperor Xiaozong once wanted to add "The Great Learning: Extended Meaning" to the list of books for the imperial examinations, but this was opposed by Liu Jian, the Grand Secretary, who said, "The established laws of our ancestors should not be changed lightly."

In the 22nd year of the Wanli Emperor's reign, he intended to include Zhang Juzheng's "Straightforward Explanation of the Four Books" as a reference for the imperial examinations, but this was rejected after being impeached by the censor for "using private interests to interfere with public affairs."

In other words, in the early Ming Dynasty, the emperor still kept his word and could successfully intervene in the imperial examination system.

The later the period went, the less effective the emperor's words became.

Civil officials gained even deeper control over the imperial examination system.

Today, it can be said that the imperial examination system is the bastion of autonomy for the civil service system, and the imperial power can only make adjustments on the periphery.

Therefore, after a moment's deliberation, Yuan Keli said, "I have heard that when a sage king establishes laws, he must do so according to the times. The records in the 'Heavenly Mirror' are indeed like a bright mirror hanging in the hall. However, if we suddenly change the system for selecting officials, I fear we will lose the hearts of scholars throughout the land. In the past, when Emperor Xiaozong wanted to expand the 'Great Learning Extended Meaning,' Liu Wenjing advised against it, saying that 'the established laws of our ancestors should not be easily changed.' When Emperor Shenzong promoted the 'Straightforward Explanation of the Four Books,' the censors impeached him for 'disrupting public justice for private gain,' and it was canceled. It is not that I do not want to clean up the officialdom, but I am afraid that going too far in correcting the wrong will harm the foundation of the country."

Your Majesty, you seem to be going a bit too far.

Zhu Youxiao, however, did not think so. He questioned, "Have you not seen the Yan family during the Jiajing reign? Their protégés and former officials were all over the country, their crimes were obvious, yet no one dared to impeach them!"

"Your Majesty clearly shows you!"

Seeing that the emperor was determined, Yuan Keli's voice grew increasingly urgent: "Yongle promulgated the Complete Five Classics at the beginning of the dynasty, and now, after 250 years of peace, the scholarly community is deeply rooted. If we force children to recite the 'Heavenly Mirror,' it is like watering new seedlings with boiling water; if we make the Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations) use it as a standard, it will inevitably lead to factional strife in the selection process. I humbly request that you proceed with caution and first promulgate it to the prefectures and counties to warn corrupt officials."

"pedantic!"

Zhu Youxiao frowned. If he couldn't even persuade Yuan Keli, how could he convince the people of the world and then intervene in the imperial examination?
The emperor sternly retorted, "I have heard that when Bao Xiaosu of the Song Dynasty cast the Greedy Spring Stele, I have never heard of any scholars failing the imperial examinations because of it. You all always use 'ancestral rules' as an excuse, but do you not know that when Emperor Taizu first promulgated the Great Proclamation, wasn't it also a new system?"

Seeing the situation was turning sour, Sun Chengzong quickly stepped forward to defuse the predicament: "Lord Yuan is not trying to obstruct His Majesty's will, but he is worried that the upright officials will take this opportunity to slander him. It would be better to follow the example of 'The Washing Away of Wrongs' and order the Ministry of Justice to compile it into a book, temporarily excluding it from the classics."

Zhu Youxiao looked up at the sky and laughed, saying, "How foolish you two are! I have had the names of corrupt officials engraved on the annals of history precisely to shatter their illusion of 'pure conduct.' Do you remember the imperial examination scandal of the thirty-eighth year of the Wanli reign? Did those self-proclaimed upright examiners receive less bribe money than the eunuch faction?"

Yuan Keli, his robe soaked with sweat, still argued: "However, the imperial examination is a grand ceremony for selecting talent. If it is mixed with criminal law, I fear it will harm scholars from poor families."

"From a poor family?"

Zhu Youxiao chuckled, unsure whether to call Yuan Keli clever or foolish.

"How could a truly poor family afford to study the Four Books with Zhu Xi's commentaries? I want to ensure that even the most naive children can see the 'Heavenly Mirror' as soon as they open a book, so that the absurd saying 'a clean magistrate earns ten thousand taels of silver in three years' will be eradicated from this world!"

The Ming Dynasty has reached its current state.

Should we blindly follow ancestral rules?

Even though they knew this was a good thing for the Ming Dynasty, they argued against it by citing ancestral rules because it would harm the interests of certain people.

Knowing full well that some things are harmful to the Ming Dynasty, they sit idly by and watch them wreak havoc on the country because they benefit certain individuals.

He had witnessed the grand scene of Zuo Shunmen kneeling and remonstrating with the emperor nearly a month into his reign.

Now, most of the officials in the court are those he promoted.

Zhu Youxiao wanted to emulate Zhao Gao's "pointing at a deer and calling it a horse" to see just how many "pure officials" were left in the court!
you guys
Do they still dare to engage in partisan strife?
Not convinced?

Let's see a mass resignation!

(End of this chapter)