The Ming Dynasty: Starting with Emperor Chongzhen's crackdown on factionalism

"This is the record of the actual payroll issued to Jinzhou Town in the same month. The account states that the actual payroll was 8,300 taels of silver, which is 2,300 taels less than the amount due."

He put down the ledger.

"I have investigated the whereabouts of these two thousand three hundred taels. There is a line of small print in the military register—'deducted from the treasury for emergency use.' But this 'treasury' does not appear again in the subsequent account books. There is no record of where this money went."

Zhu Youjian finally spoke.

"You mean, this money wasn't even kept in the vault?"

Chen Zhiyuan said.

"I cannot be certain. However, I have checked all the account books of Jinzhou Town from October to December of the second year of Chongzhen's reign, and I have not found any record of this money being spent again. If it were truly 'stored in the treasury for emergencies,' there should be records of expenditures when needed in an emergency, or records of the balance at the end of the year. There are neither of these."

Chengji Mingshuo.

"Perhaps the ledgers have been lost."

Chen Zhiyuan nodded.

"Grand Secretary Cheng is right, it may have been lost. But I checked the documents from the Jinzhou Garrison in the Ministry of War archives and there is no mention of this money."

"If it were truly 'emergency' funds, there should be relevant documentation—such as a request for permission to use them or a report on the remaining balance. There wasn't a single one."

Cheng Jiming did not speak again.

Zhou Yanru said.

"Chen Qianxian, what you're investigating all concerns matters from Yuan Chonghuan's time as military commander. You just said you wanted to start the investigation into Yuan's case by examining military expenditures. What do these issues with military expenditures have to do with Yuan Chonghuan himself?"

Chen Zhiyuan looked at him.

"Your Excellency Zhou asks a good question. As for whether Yuan Chonghuan himself was involved in these military expenditures, I cannot draw a conclusion at this time. But I can say one thing."

He picked up the fifth account book from the low table.

"This is a copy of a memorial submitted by Yuan Chonghuan to the Ministry of War in April of the second year of the Chongzhen reign. The memorial stated, 'The various garrisons in Liaodong have long been short of provisions and pay, and the soldiers are hungry and exhausted, with desertions increasing daily. I request that 300,000 taels of silver be issued immediately to stabilize the morale of the army.'"

He put down this one and picked up another.

"This is the record of the Ministry of Revenue's allocation of funds for Liaodong military expenses in the same month. Two hundred thousand taels were allocated that month, one hundred thousand taels less than what Yuan Chonghuan requested. There is a note on the allocation ledger: 'The treasury funds are insufficient, so seventy percent will be allocated first.'"

He picked up the third book.

"This is Yuan Chonghuan's second memorial to the Ministry of War in June of the same year. The memorial stated, 'The pay is still insufficient, and the various garrisons have been in arrears for more than half a year. Soldiers are selling their wives and children. Please issue another 200,000 taels.'"

He put it down and picked up the fourth book.

"This is the Ministry of Revenue's disbursement record for June. 120,000 taels were disbursed. The annotation reads: 'Half of the grain transport has not yet arrived.'"

He placed the account books side by side on the low table.

"Yuan Chonghuan asked for 300,000, and the Ministry of Revenue gave him 200,000. Yuan Chonghuan asked for another 200,000, and the Ministry of Revenue gave him 120,000. In total, Yuan Chonghuan asked for 500,000, and the Ministry of Revenue gave him 320,000, leaving a difference of 180,000."

He looked at Zhou Yanru.

"Grand Secretary Zhou, Yuan Chonghuan requested funds, but the Ministry of Revenue couldn't provide enough—that's the Ministry of Revenue's business. But after Yuan Chonghuan received the 320,000 taels, how much actually reached the soldiers, whether it was withheld or intercepted—does that have anything to do with him?"

Zhou Yanru did not answer.

Chen Zhiyuan continued.

"Your Majesty, I have examined the military pay records of the various garrisons in Liaodong from May to July of the second year of the Chongzhen reign. The three garrisons of Ningyuan, Jinzhou, and Shanhaiguan collected a total of 280,000 taels of silver in military pay during these three months. This is 40,000 taels less than the 320,000 taels allocated by the Ministry of Revenue."

He paused.

"Where did these 40,000 taels go? Were they confiscated by the grain transport authorities, the prefectures and counties, or Liaodong itself? I cannot find out."

He Wuzhou said.

"If we can't find it, it means we have no evidence."

Chen Zhiyuan nodded.

"Your Excellency He is right. Without evidence, I cannot say who withheld it. But I can use another set of figures to show you what these 40,000 taels of silver mean."

He picked up the price list from the low table.

"Forty thousand taels of silver can buy thirty-three thousand bushels of rice in the capital. Based on the ration of one and a half bushels of rice per soldier in Liaodong per month, it is enough to feed twenty-two thousand people for a month."

He put down the paper.

"In the second year of the Chongzhen reign, the actual number of soldiers in the various garrisons of Liaodong, according to the Ministry of War's register, was 48,000. 40,000 taels of silver was enough to feed the entire army for half a month."

The platform was deathly silent.

Cheng Jiming, Zhou Yanru, Qian Shisheng, and He Wuzhou remained silent.

Zhu Youjian sat on the throne, his face ashen.

After a long time, Cheng Jiming finally spoke.

"Chen Qianxian, are all those figures you just mentioned true?"

Chen Zhiyuan looked at him.

"Your Excellency, the archives I have accessed are all in the Censorate. The original or copies of the account books from the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Revenue, the Grand Canal Administration, and various garrisons are all there. Your Excellency can send someone to verify them at any time. I am willing to take responsibility for any discrepancies."

Cheng Jiming did not ask any further questions.

Zhou Yanru said.

"Chen Qianxian, what are you trying to prove after investigating so much?"

Chen Zhiyuan looked at him.

"Grand Secretary Zhou, what I want to explain is very simple. When Yuan Chonghuan was in charge of the military affairs in Liaodong, he handled nearly three million taels of military expenditure. Not all of this money was used in Liaodong. There was a shortfall of 680,000 taels. This 680,000 taels was enough to buy 560,000 shi of rice, enough to feed 100,000 soldiers for a year."

He paused.

"Whether Yuan Chonghuan himself embezzled, I currently have no evidence. But the money is indeed missing. Who took it, and how, I will continue to investigate. After the investigation is complete, whether Yuan Chonghuan is guilty and whether he should be executed will naturally become clear."

Zhou Yanru did not speak again.

Zhu Youjian suddenly spoke.

"Chen Zhiyuan, you just used prices in the capital to calculate the cost of living. I ask you, which is more expensive, the capital or the border towns?"

Chen Zhiyuan said.

"Your Majesty, prices in the border towns are higher than in the capital. This is because the cost of transporting grain is high, there are fewer grain merchants, and there is war and chaos. Take rice as an example: in the second year of Chongzhen's reign, the average price of rice in Ningyuan City, Liaodong, was 1.8 taels per shi (a unit of dry measure). That was 50% more expensive than in the capital."

He picked up another piece of paper from the low table.

"I have calculated that, based on the prices in the border towns, 680,000 taels of silver can buy 370,000 shi of rice. That's 190,000 shi less than if we calculate based on the prices in the capital. But 370,000 shi is still enough to feed the entire army in Liaodong for eight months."

He put down the paper.

"Your Majesty, I used the prices in the capital to make it clear to everyone. Prices in the capital are transparent, and everyone knows how much one tael of silver can buy. Only by using this standard can we see how enormous 680,000 taels is."

Zhu Youjian remained silent.

He stood up, walked to the edge of the platform, and looked at the palace walls in the distance.

Cheng Jiming, Zhou Yanru, Qian Shisheng, and He Wuzhou all lowered their heads, and no one dared to utter a sound.

Chen Zhiyuan stood still, motionless.

After a long time, Zhu Youjian turned around.

"Six hundred and eighty thousand taels." He repeated the number, his voice not loud.

"In the three years since I ascended the throne, the annual revenue of the imperial treasury has been less than three million taels. The military expenses for the nine border regions are four million taels, leaving a shortfall of more than one million taels. When I increased the tax on Liaodong, the people cursed me, and the court officials also cursed me. They cursed me for competing with the people for profit, and they cursed me for being cruel and ungrateful."

He walked back to the throne, but did not sit down.

"And what happened? It turns out that the money never even reached the border. The shortfall of over a million was actually embezzled by these people."

He looked at Chen Zhiyuan.

"You just said that 680,000 taels of silver is enough to feed 100,000 soldiers for a year?"

Chen Zhiyuan said.

"Yes. At one and a half shi of grain per person per month, that's enough to eat for a year."

Zhu Youjian nodded.

"In the second year of the Chongzhen reign, there were 48,000 soldiers in Liaodong. 680,000 taels of silver was enough to feed them for two years."