Ming Dynasty: Moral blackmail? I, Emperor Chongzhen, have no morals!

Chapter 86: Some things left unsaid are not the same as not said at all! (Please continue reading)

A few days later, at dawn, the sun shone brightly over Xing County, but the county town itself felt cold and damp under the sunlight.

Along the roadsides in Xing County, many corpses are burning.

In recent days, more than two thousand refugees have been executed on Gao Qiqian's orders for breaking through the defense line.

Inside the Taiyuan Governor's Office, Shanxi Governor Zhang Bingwen clutched his newly written memorial, his eyes fixed on Wu Daozheng, the Director of the Eastern Depot, without uttering a word.

Wu Daozheng sat at the entrance of the governor's office, at a table that had been hastily brought in, pouring himself some tea. "Governor Zhang," he said, "you'd better think this through! What will happen if you submit this memorial?"

Zhang Bingwen was furious when he heard Gao Qiqian order the shooting of civilians who tried to cross the pass. Although he was the highest-ranking official in the province, he had no power to deal with eunuchs. So he prepared to submit a memorial to the emperor to impeach Gao Qiqian and Wu Daozheng, the director of the Eastern Depot, for indiscriminately killing innocent people.

"What consequences? As the governor of Shanxi, I have failed the emperor's grace by the outbreak of a major epidemic in Shanxi. What is death to me?" Zhang Bingwen glanced at Wu Daozheng and said disdainfully.

Zhang Bingwen was fearless. In the original historical account, when the Qing army captured Jinan, he led his troops to their deaths on the city walls. His wives, concubines, and maids all threw themselves into Daming Lake to accompany him on his journey. His entire family were tough and resilient, so they were completely unafraid of the threat posed by the Eastern Depot's commander before them...

Wu Daozheng lifted the lid of the empty teacup on the table, poured in seven-tenths of tea, and pushed it to the corner of the table: "He won't die, but if Governor Zhang submits this memorial, His Majesty will order me to escort Gao Qiqian back to the capital! Gao Qiqian certainly won't survive! But the people in major cities like Taiyuan and Pingyang probably won't survive either!"

"What do you mean?"

"This plague doesn't care where you're from or what your official rank is!" Wu Daozheng said softly.

Seeing that Zhang Bingwen was still thinking, Wu Daozheng continued, "Shanxi has over two million people! Xing County only has a little over ten thousand! Besides, most of them are infected with the plague, so whether we kill them or not, they won't live much longer!"

Zhang Bingwen's eyes widened as he listened to Wu Daozheng's words. The sages' teachings he had learned all emphasized serving the people and bringing benefits to the region. But now he was indeed facing the question of whether to protect the masses and let go of the few, or lose the masses because of the few.

After pondering for a long time, Zhang Bingwen's sharp gaze gradually dimmed. If these infected people from Xing County were to move around throughout Shanxi Province, or even leave Shanxi, it would undoubtedly be a disaster that would sweep across the Ming Dynasty.

This year, the imperial court exempted the people from taxes, resulting in a sharp decrease in the number of refugees across the country. In the remaining areas free from the plague, the court has already begun disaster relief efforts, and all the land confiscated by the emperor has been used to resettle the victims. If this plague had not been contained in Xing County and Shanxi, countless more people throughout the Ming Dynasty would have perished because of it...

Zhang Bingwen then took two steps forward, slowly sat down at the corner of the desk, pushed the memorial in his hand in front of Wu Daozheng, picked up his teacup, took a sip, and said, "You're right! I was inconsiderate!"

Zhang Bingwen knew that when he impeached Gao Qiqian for massacring the people who had crossed the border in Xing County, the emperor would definitely order Wu Daozheng, the director of the Eastern Depot, to escort Gao Qiqian back to the capital in order to quell public opinion. At that time, the whole of Shanxi would be ravaged by plague.

Moreover...moreover...

Thinking of this, Zhang Bingwen suddenly looked up at Wu Daozheng, his eyes filled with fear. He wondered if the emperor really didn't know what Gao Qiqian was doing in Shanxi? Was it because the emperor tacitly approved that Gao Qiqian was so fearless in killing the officers and civilians and suppressing the center of the plague outbreak in Xing County?

Zhang Bingwen then wondered if Gao Qiqian and Wu Daozheng had misunderstood? Had the emperor not given any instructions, and they had acted on their own?

Seeing Zhang Bingwen's shocked expression, Wu Daozheng said with a smile, "I remember there's a Prince Jin's Mansion in Taiyuan, which is over two hundred years old. It was built by Emperor Hongwu for his third son. I'd like to take a look, since I've never been to any other prince's mansion except when I was in the palace!"

Wu Daozheng was subtly telling Zhang Bingwen that the emperor was not one for sentimentality. The lineage of the Prince of Jin, the direct descendant of the founding emperor, which had been passed down for over two hundred years, was ruthless. He could kill princes without hesitation, and the entire Jin princely domain, including over a dozen princes and tens of thousands of their families, was imprisoned. His methods were so cruel that even the head of the Eastern Depot was terrified...

What are these tens of thousands of people in Xing County compared to the entire Jin province? He had heard that when the emperor came to Shanxi, the Fen River was blood red for three days straight... Were those people guilty? Wu Daozheng didn't know, but if the emperor said they were guilty, they were definitely guilty. Even if they weren't guilty, there would be evidence to prove their guilt!

After listening, Zhang Bingwen sighed after a long pause: "Due to regulations, the Prince of Jin's residence cannot be sold and is currently vacant, under the jurisdiction of the Governor's Office! I will accompany Eunuch Wu to take a look!"

Zhang Bingwen understood. He also knew that Wu Daozheng was reminding him that the emperor only cared about the results, not the process. If he turned a good situation into a big mess, making it known to everyone in the court and the public, and causing the emperor to lose face, resulting in more ordinary people dying from the plague, he would be a sinner. He didn't kill Bo Ren, but Bo Ren died because of him!

Moreover, how could these two high-ranking eunuchs in front of him possibly misunderstand? After observing people's expressions for so many years, if they misunderstood something like this, they wouldn't have been able to climb up the ranks... Thinking of this, Zhang Bingwen smiled bitterly to himself.

Upon hearing that Zhang Bingwen wanted to personally take him to visit the Prince of Jin's residence, Wu Daozheng knew that Zhang Bingwen had made up his mind, and slowly stood up: "Let's go, Governor Zhang!"

Wu Daozheng walked to the outside of the governor's office, glanced back at Zhang Bingwen following behind him, and said meaningfully, "If Governor Zhang has compassion for the common people and a bodhisattva's heart, he should raise more grain so that he can at least have a full meal before he dies!"

The best course of action is to achieve the goal without resorting to coercion. Zhang Bingwen is not stupid; he can distinguish between the important and the trivial. If Zhang Bingwen is really a hothead and insists on submitting a memorial, Wu Daozheng has a backup plan: to have the agents of the Eastern Depot intercept and kill the messenger. In short, this matter cannot be brought before the emperor.

In other words, the emperor could receive memorials through other channels, but absolutely not through Shanxi. If he didn't handle matters cleanly and always needed explicit instructions from the emperor, he would soon follow in the footsteps of Li Wen, the former director of the Eastern Depot...

That's the reality. That's why leaders are reluctant to speak explicitly; it's like they're using sign language. As a trusted confidant, you can carry out their orders, and if something goes wrong, the leader can forgive you and protect you! But as a tool, you're the scapegoat when something goes wrong... especially in a feudal society like the Ming Dynasty...

Wu Daozheng and Zhang Bingwen turned through several alleys and arrived at the magnificent gate of the Prince of Jin's Mansion. After more than two hundred years of expansion, the Prince of Jin's Mansion was so large that it made people feel ashamed!

The yamen runners stepped forward, opened the gates, and stood to one side. Upon seeing this, Zhang Bingwen extended his arm and said, "Please!"

Wu Daozheng nodded, put his hands behind his back, and slowly stepped into the Prince of Jin's residence. The corridors and scenery that came into view truly shocked Wu Daozheng...

He muttered to himself, "The Prince of Jin's mansion, which had been around for over two hundred years, is gone just like that." Zhang Bingwen nodded in response, without saying a word.