Who killed the Ming Dynasty?

Outside the hall, dark clouds churned, and a few rays of sunlight struggled to pierce through the clouds, cutting the light and shadow inside the hall into a play of light and dark.

"Your Majesty is wise!"

Minister of Justice Xie Xuelong emerged from the shadows, his voice as clear as metal and stone.

"Fang Dayou and Wang Aoyong, as important officials of the court, have committed heinous crimes by betraying their country and turning against the enemy. They should be executed to uphold the law."

Cabinet Minister Ma Shiying frowned slightly and stepped forward:

"Your subject risks his life to report this—"

"These two scoundrels certainly deserve to be torn to pieces, but considering the bigger picture, sparing their lives has three advantages:"

"Firstly, those who have not yet submitted will see the court's sincerity in welcoming surrender. If they are killed, who will dare to surrender in the future?"

Secondly, the correspondence between their headquarters and their subordinates could reveal the true nature of the enemy chieftain;

"Thirdly, if benevolent governance is implemented, it will win over the hearts of the gentry in Jiangbei."

He paused, his voice turning deep.

"I am not trying to exonerate a guilty subject, but I beg Your Majesty to use the entire nation as a scale to weigh the severity of the crime."

Shi Kefa stepped forward and loudly retorted:

"Your Majesty is wise!"

"These two traitors first surrendered Shandong to the Jurchens, and then secretly sent false proclamations to the prefectures and counties. They shall be executed by slow slicing!"

His eyes widened, and his tone became increasingly impassioned.

"Your Majesty, I request that his head be immediately executed and displayed at Jubao Gate in Nanjing. This is not because we are bloodthirsty, but because it is necessary to kill him in order to demonstrate the majesty of Heaven and set the record straight."

As soon as he finished speaking, the hall erupted in uproar.

Immediately afterwards, the ministers began a fierce debate over whether or not to kill the two men.

Some people, their faces ashen, shouted "He should be executed!" Others urgently explained the "drawbacks of killing him." Still others, clerks carrying heavy legal texts, hurried forward, and a noisy discussion arose from below the hall.

"Execute immediately!"

—Three words to cut off all the noise.

Zhu Cilang's decision caused an instant deathly silence to fill the hall.

"I killed them not because they surrendered to the enemy."

"Those who surrendered include ministers who knelt to survive and soldiers who packed their provisions and rode forth. Should they all be executed?"

"What I have presented are three irrefutable pieces of evidence following his treason."

He stood up and slowly descended the steps.

"Firstly, they advised the enemy to harm our border generals."

Secondly, they plundered the people's wealth, causing our people to be displaced.

Thirdly, they slandered the imperial court and misled the people in the enemy camp.

"These three crimes harm the army, injure the people, and shake the foundation of the nation."

"If I were to pardon him, how could I uphold the law and deter treacherous officials?"

The officials below the steps bowed in unison and said:

"Your Majesty is wise."

Before the echoes of the debate had faded, the heads of the three departments and key cabinet members immediately stepped forward to argue about whether or not to execute someone by slow slicing.

The Minister of Justice presented the "Criminal Laws" and strongly argued for justice; Liu Zongzhou, the Left Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, cited the precedent set by the Lan Yu case during the Hongwu reign; and the Chief Justice of the Court of Judicial Review knelt and presented the "Collected Statutes of the Ming Dynasty" to the ancestral authority.

The young emperor's brows were furrowed, and his expression was grave.

Is slow slicing (lingchi) too cruel?

A gust of wind blew through the room, stirring up the "Great Ming Code." Liu Zongzhou reached out and pressed his hand against the book, pointing to the words "death by a thousand cuts" and shouting:

"Your Majesty! The ironclad laws of our ancestors clearly state that traitors shall be punished with a thousand cuts, to serve as a warning to all who are disloyal!"

Ultimately, the law prevailed over all considerations of mercy.

The judgment is made in accordance with the "Treason and Rebellion" article of the Criminal Law of the Ming Dynasty:

The second offender was executed by slow slicing, with 3,600 cuts. All male members of the three clans aged sixteen and above were beheaded immediately. The female relatives were sent to the laundry department, and all family property was confiscated.

However, the argument left him unsettled and his thoughts in turmoil.

The sound of the evening drum came from outside Fengtian Gate, its lingering resonance reverberating throughout the main hall.

A minor official from the Ministry of Justice stepped forward and lit the lamps, causing the flickering candlelight to dance.

Zhu Cilang stared at the flickering candlelight, the dancing halo of light seemingly reflecting a picture of a shattered land.

He suddenly realized that merely executing two surrendered officials was far from enough to eradicate the empire's deep-seated problems.

There are even more traitors hidden behind transactions and interests, gradually eroding the foundation of the Ming Dynasty.

He suddenly looked up, breaking the silence:

"In my observation of the rise and fall of dynasties throughout history, internal strife often stems from more serious problems than external threats."

His tone suddenly turned stern.

"Even worse, there are those who secretly collude with the enemy, selling grain at high prices to the Jurchens through border merchants, and smuggling salt smugglers in Jiangnan to supply the bandits with fine iron."

"These vermin are eroding the very foundation of our Great Ming Dynasty; they are even more deserving of punishment than those who defect on the battlefield!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than Shi Kefa seized the opportunity and loudly reported:

"Your Majesty! The secret files from Xuanfu serve as proof—"

"Fan Yongdou and eight other merchants, under the guise of the tea-horse trade, are actually aiding the enemy and committing treason!"

He suddenly stopped.

"These unscrupulous merchants secretly smelt refined iron into Buddhist shrines and iron pots, and their annual ironware exports amount to no less than five thousand catties."

"Furthermore, taking advantage of the military granaries' transshipment, they sold the grain stored at the nine border regions to the Jurchens at high prices, amounting to more than 100,000 shi of millet annually!"

Zhu Cilang recalled that caravan from the northern frontier—the Shanxi merchants.

They transported scarce iron, grain, and gunpowder from Zhangjiakou to the enemy in a continuous stream, with the tacit approval or even indulgence of the border generals.

The so-called "tribute trade" is nothing but a deception and a fraud; it is clearly feeding the enemy and raising a tiger to cause trouble!

The imperial decree had long been rendered meaningless: the law that "anyone who smuggles weapons shall be executed" was still in effect, but it could not restrain the hands of greed.

The millet in the Xuanfu military granary actually fed the hungry wolves beyond the Great Wall.

Those corrupt Shanxi merchants still dared to use 100,000 shi of millet to exchange for a "royal merchant" promise from the Jurchens.

The Censors of the Censorate had long been used as tools for factional struggles, and the memorials submitted by the Supervising Secretaries of the Six Ministries were also embezzled by silver.

Emperor Taizu established thirteen circuits of censors, originally intended to inspect the realm on behalf of Heaven and to maintain order and discipline; however, this system of oversight and discipline had long since collapsed and existed in name only.

Without swift and decisive reforms, the Ming Dynasty would eventually collapse and be reduced to ruins.

However, Shanxi today is no longer under the rule of the Ming Dynasty, and its influence is beyond the reach of the Ming government.

"Your Majesty!"

Shi Kefa presented the report.

"The chieftain of the Jurchens once said, 'With the help of merchants from the Central Plains, it's like having 100,000 elite soldiers.'"

"These people betray their country for personal gain; they are the very root of this evil, strengthening the bones of the enemy and sucking their blood!"

He raised his hands high and presented the memorial, proclaiming in a clear voice.

"I humbly request Your Majesty's perusal. This is the 'Memorial on Economic Suppression of the Barbarians' drafted by the Grand Secretariat, requesting that their trade routes be cut off to eliminate their source of supplies!"

"Bang--!"

A loud bang!

Zhu Cilang suddenly stood up and slammed his hand on the table.

"allow!"

His gaze swept over the assembled officials in the hall.

"Issue my imperial edict:"

"Effective immediately, merchants, ships, and travelers are strictly prohibited from engaging in smuggling with the Jurchens."

"Anyone who traffics rice, ironware, gunpowder, silk, tea, salt, or other such goods shall be punished as a traitor."

"The Ministry of War and the Ministry of Revenue are hereby ordered to promptly issue an edict, strictly instructing all towns along the river and coast, as well as all customs and ferries, that all goods transported north without official verification be confiscated!"

Thunder rumbled across the glazed tiles of the palace roof, and hundreds of lamps flickered in unison.

By enforcing the strict decree at this moment, he intended to completely sever the economic ties with the Jurchens, both to weaken the enemy's strength and to deter those who secretly colluded with the government and the people inside and outside the court.

They also intended to use this to raise prices within the territory of the Jurchens, deplete their silver reserves, and empty their treasuries, thereby demonstrating the court's determination to reform its internal affairs and eliminate the source of corruption.

"Eight families of traitors, national villains and beasts!"

Zhu Cilang spat out a cold remark between his teeth.

"Once the royal army has recovered Shanxi and cut off the trade route to Zhangjiakou, I will settle accounts with them one by one!"

Even though Shanxi had fallen into enemy hands, and even though he could not completely eradicate smuggling, he still wanted to make the Jurchens spend twice as much silver to buy a single shi of grain and lose a hundred more lives to buy a single suit of armor.

This economic war will be the beginning of the Ming Dynasty's counterattack.

The candle flame suddenly leaped, igniting two inextinguishable flames in his eyes.